Guardians At The Gates Of Hell
by Luc Star
Summary: [Discontinued] Giles learns about a potential slayer living in Bayville and goes to retrieve her. Once there, he finds himself having to deal with the girl’s legal guardians… The XMen. BTVSXMen Crossover. [New Revamped version of story already up]
1. Potential Discovery

Hey all, I would like to welcome you to my first crossover fan-fiction. Now I don't know about you all but I just love a good crossover. Its one of the first types of fan-fiction I search for on each and every time I log on to the internet. And I think I have actually taken the time to read most of the crossovers between my favourite characters and shows that are available on the net or on and I must admit, after reading so many good crossovers over the net, I couldn't help but be inspired to take a crack at my little crossover story.

Anyways, before you all start reading my fan-fiction however, I think it's only fair that I mention some of the writers here on whose work in the field of crossovers have truly inspired me to start on my own story. Notmanos, Red Witch, RoguefanKC, Lucinda, Redhead2, Bastille Kain, White Werewolf, Agent-G, JBTheMan, Ascanius, asha-man72, Sinayah, cobra, Gaeriel Mallory, Spanishwon2123, Galahad, and Dylan Clearbrook are just a few of these writers on whose crossover stories have inspired me to try and write a good crossover. Anyone of you who are interested in crossover fan-fictions should really check out the works done by these guys.

Personal thanks to all the abovementioned authors for inspiring me. Keep up the good work that you all do. And keep those great stories coming our way.

With that out of the way, I would like to welcome you to…

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**GUARDIANS AT THE GATES OF HELL**

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Timeline of this story will be: -

BTVS Timeline – somewhere around the middle of Seventh Season

X-Men Evolution Timeline – about nine months after the end of the series

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**DISCLAIMER** – The characters of Angel and Buffy the Vampire Slayer belong to Joss Whedon, the WB, UPN, Mutant Enemy, Twentieth Century Fox and others whom I don't know about. The characters of X-Men Evolution are owned by Marvel. I am not in any way affiliated with any of the groups or organizations that hold rights over the characters of Angel or Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or X-Men Evolution and neither have I been authorized to write the following story. This is a non-profit fan based effort and no copyright infringement is intended. So, umm… please don't sue.

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**Summary**: Rupert Giles learns of a potential slayer living in Bayville and enlists the help of Dawn to go and retrieve her. Now, all they have to do is convince the girl's family and best friend, who just happens to be the most dangerous mutant on the planet. BTVS/X-Men: Evolution (Pre Chosen/Post Dark Horizons). Crossover

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**Chapter 1: Potential Discovery**

The Summers Resident had turned into the house of chaos, and the latest in the line of apocalypses that Buffy Summers and her very good friends were trying to prevent had zilch to do with their immediate predicament. No, the entity only known as The First Evil was still out there, planning, plotting, and a few other things which will not be mentioned at this point. What the cause of the chaos at the Summers residence was none other than a group of teenage girls, all future potential slayers, all living under the same roof. A situation one British individual was discovering to be even less preferable than an end of the world scenario.

"Kennedy, would you please stop trying to kill Andrew." Rupert Giles, ex-watcher and more of a father figure to the Chosen One than her own biological father, tried his most sternest of voices on the potential slayer with little or no result. A potential slayer, who at that moment had Andrew Wells, 'former' demon raiser and spell caster, not to mention self-appointed 'former' Super Villain, and also at times Storyteller, etc. etc. in a tight headlock.

"Why won't he stop making up stories," Kennedy growled as she put more pressure on Andrew's head. "We were there when Buffy took out that Uber-Vamp, and he's still going around telling his version of what happened."

Andrew in turn just cried out for someone to save him from the psycho potential.

Giles groaned and shook his head before moving on to a different matter that required his attention. After all, loosing Andrew would most probably be not that big of a loss in the end. At least, that was what he was hoping for… or rather, it was what he was trying to convince himself of.

He saw Rona, another potential slayer giving the Chinese girl Chao-Ahn, who just happened to be another one of the potential slayers living beneath the Summers roof, a piece of her mind for occupying the restroom for a very lengthy period of time in the morning.

"Rona," Giles reprimanded the young African American, "would you please stop trying to lecture Chao-Ahn".

As he finished, Rona stopped and glared at Chao-Ahn, who in turn just smiled back brilliantly at the girl and gave her a two thumbs up before walking away cheerfully.

"I don't believe she understood a word you said to begin with," Giles muttered under his breath.

Rona just rolled her eyes, threw her hands up in the air in frustration, and walked away in another direction muttering something under her breath.

He felt a slight tap on his shoulder and turned to see Vi and Molly, two more potential slayers, one looking extremely upset while the other was looking somewhat guilty, and knew at once that this was another matter he will have to deal with.

"Molly here finished all the chocolate chip cookies," Vi complained with both her hands on her hips and her lips in a slight pout and then went on to add, "MY Chocolate Chip Cookies… I had it labelled and everything."

"I did tell her I was sorry," Molly tried to defend herself sheepishly; "I saw the packet lying around the kitchen, and just had a craving and couldn't help myself."

Giles massaged the bridge of his nose and looked at the clock on the wall. It was barely 7:45 in the morning and he was already getting a headache. He told the girls that he was going to get Buffy or one of the others in the household to bring in additional supplies when any of them headed out later during the day. Vi asked what she was supposed to eat in the mean time, and Giles's response to that was to grab a passing Willow Rosenberg, witch extraordinaire and best friend to Buffy Summer, and tell her to handle the crazy cravings the two teenage girl's were having. Willow never had a chance to frown at the request; neither did she have time to protest as the sounds of the phone ringing in the hall made Giles literally make a mad dash in the direction to answer it… only to be beaten by none other than the chosen one herself, the slayer, AKA Buffy Anne Summers.

"Hello," Buffy spoke into the receiver, "Summers Residence".

Giles watched as his slayer exchanged a few pleasantries with the person at the other end of the connection before finally handing the phone over to him while mouthing the word, "England".

Giles's eyebrows knitted together in contemplation of whom or why anyone would call him all the way from England even before he relieved the receiver from Buffy's hand, who just smiled at him and went into the kitchen to get some breakfast.

"Hello… this is Rupert Giles speaking," Giles greeted the person at the other end of the line.

Upon recognising the individual at the other end, a small smile began to spread over Giles's face as he went on to exchange some small-talk with the person at the other end of the connection. His expression however turned serious as the main reason for why the individual from England had contacted him was finally brought up. Giles just stood in the hall with the handset to his ear as he listened to the information that was being provided to him for a few minutes… his expression becoming grimmer by each passing moment.

His final words before cutting the connection and placing the handset back in its rightful place being, "yes of course, I will head out immediately. Thank you very much Althea… Yes… I realise it is going to be hard to convince her to come back to Sunnydale with me, but I assure you I will do everything in my power to bring the girl back here safely. Yes, you take care of yourself as well… and please… do keep in touch. Good Bye."

Rupert Giles sighed and shook his head in thought and proceeded to just stare at the telephone for some moment before ultimately heading into the kitchen to have a word with the slayer and the rest of the Scoobies concerning the situation that had unexpectedly been dropped on their laps.

As he entered the kitchen, Buffy Summers, who has known the older Englishman longer than almost anyone else, took one look at the expression on her mentor's face and right away realised something was wrong.

"Giles… is everything alright?" Buffy asked the Englishman to which almost everyone, which included Dawn Summers, formerly known simply as The Key, mystically moulded and sent to Buffy as a younger sister so that she will be protected against an all-powerful Hell-God by the name of Glorificus, Anya Emmanuelle Christina Jenkins, former thousand year old vengeance demon and at that moment a human being trapped in the body of a woman in her early twenties who just happened to love money more than most things in life, and Alexander Harris, original Scooby member, now carpenter and construction worker, stopped eating and talking and whatever else they were doing and turned their attention towards the older Englishman, waiting for his reply.

"Well… Hopefully everything will be alright by the time I return," Giles replied his charge's question with a sigh.

"Get Back?" Xander asked the question on everyone's mind. "Where you heading?"

"This has anything to do with the call from England?" Buffy added.

"Yes… it does actually," Giles nodded his head in Buffy's direction. "The coven in England had just a few hours ago established the location of another potential slayer… in a town on the outskirts of New York City."

"So, what's the big deal?" Dawn asked shrugging her shoulders. "Just call her up, explain to her what's going on, and ask her to come down."

Giles just let out a defeated sigh again before saying, "It's going to be difficult because the girl doesn't exactly have any idea about her… umm… special heritage."

"I thought all the potential slayers were in training with Watchers watching over them or something," Xander voiced his thoughts as the watcher leaned back against the wall of the kitchen and waited for the questions to be asked.

"Xander, don't be dumb," Anya said, or rather she scolded Xander in a 'duh' tone. "You can clearly tell from the expression on Giles's British face that the girl never had any watcher or snooty old Englishman smelling like old books to tell her anything about her special heritage." She turned towards Giles and asked with a big smile plastered over her face, "Right Giles?"

Giles cocked an eyebrow at the British and the smelling like old books comments but let it slide. However, he did actually refrain himself from taking a sniff to find out of how he smelled at that exact moment, a task even with all his watcher training he was finding very hard to accomplish. He thought to himself that he should really be used to these types of comments after knowing Anya for nearly four years, but then again, even after a lifetime, he didn't think anyone would ever get used to the ex-demon's words.

He nodded his head to Anya's comment before stating, "Anya is right. The girl never had a watcher to tell her anything about her special heritage. Actually there are a lot of girls in the world who are potentials and have no idea about their heritage." He pointedly looked at Buffy and said, "I mean… even Buffy didn't know she was a potential until she was already chosen as the next slayer."

Buffy nodded at that remark. It was quite true what Giles had just said. Before she had been chosen as a slayer, she hadn't even known about vampires and demons… much less know about the fact that she had been a potential slayer all the while. Even Amanda, who had been staying in Sunnydale all her life, had never known that she was a potential until Willow had found her using that spell to reveal potentials. Buffy then finally turned to Giles and asked, "Giles… so the girl doesn't know she's a potential slayer, but that didn't stop us from finding them and bringing them back here, so… what gives? You seem to be a little down when it comes to this one potential."

Giles sighed… he had known he wouldn't be able to hide much from his slayer. "The coven gave me some information about the girl's past… it may hinder our recruitment process."

The others at the table shared a look but didn't say anything. Giles realised that they were waiting for him to continue and therefore straightened himself before explaining. "From what the Coven has been able to gather... about six months ago, the girl's parents who lived at Beverly Hills in California, were… murdered." A gasp from Dawn followed this revelation. Xander just shook his head and sighed as Buffy's expression turned deathly serious for a slight second before turning back to their neutral state. Anya, having being around more death than most people can count up to just waved her hands for Giles to continue on with the story. Sometimes her actions really proved how much she still had to learn about living as a human being.

"Do we know who did it?" Xander asked leaning forward on the counter.

Giles shook his head before stating, "well, it was not in any way related to anything mystical… if that's what you are asking," he frowned for a second before admitting, "though I wouldn't be satisfied until there has actually been some form of mystical investigation performed on the scene of the crime." The others watched in slight amusement as the older Englishman got sidetracked from the topic at hand and his mind wondered off most possibly to determine the right mystical tools he will need in order to perform such an investigation. Just as suddenly, he was back with them. They knew this as he shook his head from getting distracted and forced himself to address the matter at hand. He finally started once again by saying, "From what the Coven has found so far, the girl was… soon afterwards taken in by the Principal of a private school in a town on the outskirts of New York and has been living there ever since." He let his words sink in before he finally said, "So, now… we have a girl who most likely witnessed the death of her parents… was taken in by someone who has offered her a new home… most possibly a new family… and… will now have to leave her new found family and come back to Sunnydale with me or risk ending up dying like the many other potentials out there… whom we still have little or no clue about."

"So," this time however, it was the younger Summers, Dawn who spoke up, "what's the plan?"

The question had not really been directed at anyone, most of them shared a look with one another. They could now relate to how Giles saw the situation. Most of the other potentials who were living under the Summers roof had not had to go through anything like this, and a few of them even knew about the fact that at any moment, they could have turned out to be the newest in the line of Slayers.

"The plan is simple really," Giles said as his shoulders slumped. He paused for a few seconds before moving away from the wall and standing up straight to meet the eyes of his most trusted and dearest of friends in the world as he regained as much of his confidence as possible before stating, "I will go and speak to the girl and explain to her everything that is going on. Hopefully I… will be able to convince her to come back to Sunnydale with me."

As Buffy met the eyes of her mentor she said, "I wish I could come with you… you know… to talk to her if…" she trailed off as Giles nodded his thinks to her sentiments. True, having Buffy around would have been very helpful but he couldn't risk Buffy stepping out of Sunnydale, even if it was for just a day or two. The forces of the First were still waiting to see if they would let their guard down… and without the Slayer around to protect the potentials, he shuddered to think what could happen.

"I should be back tomorrow evening," Giles said as he started to head out of the kitchen. Dawn Summers, who had been watching the silent interactions taking place between her sister and Giles and asked Giles something that made him stop and turn to her. "Umm… Giles… just how old is this girl?"

Giles paused for just a second as the question caught him slightly off guard before finally answering, "I believe she should be about fifteen now."

Then Dawn spoke up in a tone that stated she did not want anyone arguing with her, "Then let me come with you."

Of course, it didn't mean there weren't going to be objections.

"Dawn, no," Buffy said immediately but Dawn just held up her hands and then went on to explain her reason. "Buffy think about it, you guys are acting as though you're not really sure if Giles will be able to reach this girl… I mean… its not every day that a guy walks up to you to tell you that someone is trying to kill you because of something you are probably likely to become in the future… I mean… all I'm saying is that who better to talk to the girl than another girl who was around the same age as her?"

Buffy hated to admit it but Dawn actually had a sound idea. Giles saying "That… actually is the best idea I've heard so far," didn't help her resolve either.

"Plus," Dawn continued, "its not like he can take one of the potentials with him to explain things on the count they become moving targets as soon as they step outside this house and it turns dark."

Buffy had to agree on that also. And then Dawn added once again, "and it's a Saturday morning, I'm sure we can go today, convince the girl to come with us and be back here tomorrow in time for me to attend school on Monday," she smiled at her sister. "See, I won't even miss any classes."

Buffy was still processing everything her younger sister was saying. One could tell this was happening by the way her head would tilt to the side and her nose would scrounge up as she would try to think of a way to counter her sister's suggestion. It was rather interesting to watch that when Dawn brought up a good idea, it actually takes Buffy a little longer to process everything unlike when Giles, Xander, Willow or even Anya suggests something.

"So I'll go with Giles to New York, find the girl, talk to her, and hopefully bring her back," Dawn said resolutely as she looked towards her sister for her approval of this plan… who at that moment still seemed to be having an internal debate.

Xander finally asked Dawn what she was going to do if that fails and Dawn replied nonchalantly. "If that doesn't work, we knock her out, put her in a box and mail her over here to Sunnydale using some Express Service," she finished bobbing her head resolutely.

Almost every head at the table turned to look at her in a very comical fashion. Dawn just smiled and said with her hands up in the air in a gesture of surrender, "guys… I was just kidding."

A chorus of relieved ohs, of course, and I knew that escaped from the collective group as Dawn settled down to finish the rest of her breakfast. Giles finally looked towards Buffy to ask for her consent in taking Dawn with him to New York. Buffy looked up at Giles and then at Dawn before finally nodded her head in agreement of the plan of action. Dawn squealed in delight at her sister's approval and went over to give her sister a big hug. Buffy returned the hug but made Dawn make a promise that she was going to be extra careful on this trip. Also, if the girl decides for some reason not to come along with them, to be respectful of her wishes and not to force her to change her decision. Dawn reluctantly agreed to her sister's second request. It was not like them to know that someone was in a life and death situation and leave the person to fend for themselves. But after what the girl had already been through in her life, it would actually be most cruel to take her away from her new found family.

Exactly at that moment, Willow walked into the kitchen and looked at everyone which included, Buffy hugging Dawn, Giles leaning back against the wall, Anya and Xander arguing about something as usual… she thought that they have been getting into more arguments since Xander had walked out on her at the alter. She finally diverted the group's attention by asking, "So… guys, what's going on?"

Nearly everyone gave her an incredulous look before realising that Willow had actually been missing during the entire Scooby meeting that had just taken place. They looked at each other to see who was going to repeat the entire story once again when Anya spoke up.

"Willow, it is so good to have you finally join us… even though you missed the entire meeting. I'm sure someone here will be more than happy to fill you in." Anya got up from the chair, went over to Willow, and patted the red haired witch on her shoulders a few times before walking out of the kitchen.

"Leave it to Anya to take the easy way out," Xander commented as he watched the retreating figure of his ex-fiancée. At that very moment, Buffy got up from her seat saying she'll help Dawn pack a few things and Giles also followed the two sisters out of the kitchen saying he needed to pack a few things himself as well as make ticket arrangement for himself and Dawn… leaving Xander alone with a very expectant Willow Rosenberg.

"So," she asked her best friend after pausing for a few seconds and then finally taking a seat at the counter. "What'd I miss?"

Defeated, Xander Harris smiled at the red head before starting with what was discussed at the meeting.

Both Dawn and Giles were ready to leave the house within the hour. After exchanging a few words with the rest of the potentials, Giles headed out with Xander, Buffy and Dawn in tow. Xander was to give them a lift to the airport and much to Dawn's dismay, Buffy had decided to tag along… which meant she was going to be drilled in each and every safety precaution she was supposed to abide by while being on this trip. Dawn of course, zoned out after listening to her sister for about… twenty seconds. And the smile that both Giles and Xander seated in the front seat were trying to hide was more than enough to tell Dawn that they were completely sympathetic towards her situation. Yet they were not crazy enough to stop Buffy Summers from doing what all sisters were probably going to do given the same situation. The fact that she had superpowers was also another factor that made them think twice before interfering.

They reached the airport and Buffy and Xander followed Giles and Dawn through the check-in and then to their boarding gates. Buffy hugged her sister one last time and told Giles to take care of her before they finally departed for their flight.

"Buff," Xander told Buffy after staring at the departing plane, "I think we should head back now."

"Dawnie," Buffy sniffed.

Xander placed a hand on her shoulder and steered her towards the exit while comforting her by saying, "Oh come on Buffy…she's going to be back tomorrow… I mean, what's the worst that could really happen in forty-eight hours?"

Buffy stopped dead in her tracks and gave Xander a look that made him wonder if he was still as good at running away as he was when he was back in high-school.

"Xander," Buffy growled at her best friend in a low menacing voice, "you do realise you just jinxed her… right?"

Xander just gulped.

As the plane took off from Sunnydale, Dawn Summers turned to Rupert Giles on the seat next to her and asked, "So, you never told us the name of the girl."

Giles looked at the younger Summers seated in the seat beside him and realised that he really hadn't mentioned the girl's name when they had been talking about the girl back at the Summer's residence. "Sorry Dawn," Giles apologised to his young charge, "must have slipped my mind. Guess the girl's situation became more important than her name."

Dawn had to agree with her sister's mentor on this occasion.

"Jubilation Lee," the elder Englishman stated. "That's the name of the potential we are going to have to bring back to Sunnydale with us." He paused for a second before adding. "I think the seer told me she was living in a town called Bayville… its apparently right on the outskirts of New York."

Dawn just nodded as she finally turned her attention to the window to watch the many landmasses passing below. All the time hoping she was going to be as helpful as she had suggested she would be in recruiting the girl. True, the girl hadn't asked to be special, but the fact was that she WAS special, and she needed to know. As the aircraft soared over the clouds, Dawn just prayed this Jubilation Lee was going to make the right choice and come back to Sunnydale with the two of them.

'After all, what kind of protection could a fifteen year old hope to get from an all-powerful entity by staying at a private school in Bayville?' Dawn mused silently.

To be continued…

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**Author's Notes**

OK, so there you have it, the first chapter. Giles and Dawn are heading to Bayville to recruit the X-Men's resident firecracker. How will their first meeting go? How will Giles and Dawn react to finding out Jubilation Lee is part of the X-Men? What will the X-Men in return think of Giles and Dawn?

Some of the questions above will be answered in the next chapter. To find out which ones, please be sure to check the update page in a week or so to read the second chapter of this story. I will try to update sooner but I won't guarantee anything. Take care and enjoy.

Oh yeah... and those of you who are waiting for me to update my And Hell Will Come to Earth story... well... sorry for the delay but I've just been a little busy concentrating on this and another story over summer... I am still working on that one and will hopefully be able to post a new chapter within the next month.

Now before you leave however… **PLEASE REVIEW**.


	2. First Contact

**To My Reviewers: -**

The Uncanny R-Man – hey man, thanks for reviewing my first chapter. I am really glad that you liked how it's all starting out. Yeah... I like working with the underdogs a little. Well, I just hope that you'll be around to follow the story and see how it develops.

Agent-G – hey man… glad to know you at least like my style of writing. Hehe. I'm sorry you don't like the plot of this story, but it's the best plot I thought I could go with. I actually have two or three more alternate plots for X-Men Evolution/BTVS crossovers on my computer. I even wrote a story up to its sixth chapter before finally deciding it was not going to turn out the way if I was a reader would have wanted. Well… all I gotta say it, don't knock it till you've tried it man. Give the story a chance and maybe you'll start to like it later on.

Carmilla – hey… next time at least leave your email address so I could respond to you via mail. I'm glad you think the story is promising. And were there typos… damn… I really thought I had made all the corrections. I will try to reduce them as much as possible but hey… I'm only human after all. Point them out the next time if you can. I'll try and edit them as much as possible.

Whylime – hey man… still remembering Casual Breakfast. Hehe. That was one funny fic. Hehe. I'm really glad you like this story so far. As for me being a writer for BTVS… hehe… I wish man… just like 95 of the writers here on and I'm glad you think I got the characters down to the detail. I had a little bit of practice in writing their characters I guess. Check out my And Hell Will Come to Earth fic and you'll see what I mean. As for Anya's full name, would you believe I actually had to rummage through my DVD collection to find the particular seventh season episode where her name was mentioned in a song to get the name right. Hehe. Anyways… keep in touch via email. Take care… hope you enjoy this latest chapter as much as you did the last one.

X-Spider – thanks for reviewing. Hope you'll keep reading.

Darklight – Ah… one of my favourite reviewers. How's it going buddy? Hopefully life's been treating you well. I'm sorry if you had to wait to long for my And Hell Will Come to Earth fic, but… as you can tell, I have been slightly preoccupied. Hehe. Anyways… I'm glad you like this fic so far. Yeah… I agree with you… the destruction of the Watcher's Council did leave the potentials around the world in a bit of a tight spot. Anyways… thanks for reviewing and I hope you'll keep on reading.

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**DISCLAIMER** – The characters of Angel and Buffy the Vampire Slayer belong to Joss Whedon, the WB, UPN, Mutant Enemy, Twentieth Century Fox and others whom I don't know about. The characters of X-Men Evolution are owned by Marvel. I am not in any way affiliated with any of the groups or organizations that hold rights over the characters of Angel or Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or X-Men Evolution and neither have I been authorized to write the following story. This is a non-profit fan based effort and no copyright infringement is intended. So, umm… please don't sue.

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**Chapter 2 – First Contact**

"I can't believe we missed the first train," Dawn complained for the millionth time as she herself and Rupert Giles at long last set foot into their motel room in Bayville. They had arrived in New York about three hours before and since there were no commercial aircrafts going to Bayville from New York at that time, they had had to catch the first train they could from New York going towards Bayville. Unfortunately, that first train came and was on its way to Bayville the moment they entered the station. Therefore, they had had to wait for the next train which was to arrive at the time in another hour or so. Now, finally that they have arrived at their destination, both Dawn and Giles were beyond exhaustion. The flight from Sunnydale to New York had taken nearly six hours, and the trip to Bayville another two… all together nine hours if they were to count the hour they had to wait at the station in New York. They didn't need to say it but one look at them would have told any passing parties that these two really needed to get themselves into some nice and comfortable bed and sleep for at least two days in a row.

Regrettably, both the Sunnydale party were in Bayville not as tourists, or to snooze. They were there on an assignment and until the mission was completed, both Dawn and Giles were stubborn enough to not let fatigue get the best of them. As soon as they had arrived at the Bayville station, Giles had hurried to an information counter to get a booklet which had information in regards to the town and after finding the location of a motel close to the Bayville Mall, they had decided to check into the motel, freshen up a little bit and then go to the mall to get something to eat.

"Dawn," Giles called out to Dawn who was in the restroom at that moment. "Are you ready yet?"

"Gimme a minute," said Dawn from the other side of the door as she changed into some fresh clothes.

"Dawn, the mall is about to close in less than a few hours," Giles called out again. "We really should get there and get something to eat." He looked disgustedly at the booklet and muttered, "And I really do not want to have to resort going to anywhere near this Gut Bomb place".

At that exact moment, Dawn Summers walked out and said, "Well, if we don't find anything to eat at the mall, we could always go to that Gut Bomb place I saw in the booklet".

Giles groaned as he got up to follow the young teenager out of the motel and the five minutes walk to the shopping mall. As they entered the large establishment, Dawn immediately saw how there were still people mulling about even though it was after dark. Dawn had to remind herself that the town they were in was Bayville, not Sunnydale. People didn't have to stay indoors because of the many unearthly dangers that prowled the streets after dark.

"Is anything the matter Dawn?" Giles asked with some degree of concern after seeing the expression that had come over Dawn's face as she had taken in the state of the mall, which even he had to admit, was very nice indeed for a small town.

Dawn in reply just shook her head before stating, "No". She smiled at the older Englishman before adding, "Its just, back in Sunnydale, most people will be indoors by now, you know because of some of our unfriendly neighbours. It's just nice to see places where people can just go out and stay out without fear of something trying to eat them."

Giles smiled back at the teenager before following her into the food court which was busily packed.

"Wow!" Dawn exclaimed as she looked at the many people and then at the many tables. "There's like almost no seats."

"Dawn," Giles finally said after studying the scene in front of him. "How about you let me know what you want and I'll go get that. You can go and find us some seats in the mean time."

"Uh huh," Dawn mumbled, her eyes still on the chaotic scene of the food court unfolding in front of her. As Giles's words finally registered in her brain, she looked to Giles to make sure it was ok before letting him know what she wanted and heading off to find some seats for the both of them.

As Giles went to get some food at one of the many food stalls that had both of what he and Dawn wanted to have for dinner, he stepped into a line of people waiting to be served when a loud and extremely annoyed voice called out to him from behind.

"Hey bub, there's a queue here you know. You can't just cut in."

Giles slowly turned to come face to face… well… he did come face to face after he had turned his head down to look at the owner of the loud voice… which just turned out to be a young Chinese girl, possibly not much older than fifteen, wearing a bright yellow trench coat, matching pink earrings, a large pink sunglass resting on the top of her head, red top and black trousers along with a pair of black knee high boots, scowling back at him with both her hands on her hips while chewing what seemed like a bubblegum in her mouth.

Giles looked to the right first, then to the left, and then he turned his attention back to the girl and pointed a finger at himself to ask if the girl had been addressing him.

"Well, you see me looking at anyone else?" was the young girl's reply to Giles's gesture as she folded her hands in front of her and scowled at the older Englishman.

Giles looked around and noticed that he had indeed cut her off. He chocked it up to exhaustion because he would never in a million years cut anyone off. Ripper would have done so in order to just tick someone off but he was not that person any longer. Had not been that person in a very long time now.

"Extremely sorry miss," Giles apologised to the young Asian American girl who in return just popped a bubble gum in his face, her face still set in a scowl, "I didn't quite see you there."

The girl's eyes widened as the words left Giles's mouth and even though he didn't think it was possible, but the girl actually looked angrier than when he had 'unintentionally' cut her off in the queue.

"You calling me short old man?" the girl growled at Rupert Giles.

"Umm… no… of course not," Giles stammered trying to defend his words and he realised how what he had said must have sounded. "I did not mean to insinuate any such thing."

Giles finally sighed and thought he better explain the reasons behind his actions and words before the young girl actually decided to pounce on him. In his current state, she might in fact be able to take him down. "I am very sorry if my words and actions have offended you…"

"You bet they have," the girl cut him off as she bobbed her head resolutely… the scowl still prominent on her face.

Giles held up his hands in a gesture of surrender and to stop the girl from saying anything else before he had a chance to explain himself. "Yes… I realise. You see… I have just arrived in Bayville after a nine hour trip all the way from Los Angeles. As you can tell, I am exhausted beyond belief and I guess my brain isn't quite working at its optimum capacity." He smiled at the young girl to see if the words had any effect on her. He was somewhat pleased to find that the girl was actually thinking about what he had said.

As he moved aside to let the girl take her rightful place in the queue, she said, "Yer lucky I'm in a forgiving mood tonight".

"I'm certain that I am," Giles agreed nodding his head… even though the girl could no longer see it as her back was now facing the elder Englishman.

"Yeah you are," the girl said resolutely before adding, "I was about to go all Steven Segal on yer ass."

Giles frowned at the pop-culture reference, something he had never been good at and had actually zoned off to wonder who Steven Segal was… only to be brought out of his reverie by the voice of the girl right in front of him… again.

"Well," the girl said over her shoulder. "I probably wouldn't be allowed to pummel you for cutting me off but I could always get a friend I got here to do the job for me." She paused for a few seconds before growling back at the older Englishman. "And he would've mopped the floor with you old man. He could kick anyone's ass"

Giles rolled his eyes and looked up at the heavens and wondered whether asking for an apocalypse or even a few demons right around this point would be too much to ask. When he received no reply he knew it was indeed too much to ask. He decided to let the young girl continue on with her tirade and just wait for his turn to come at the counter. He however did shake his head and thought of just agreeing with the girl's last comment. "I'm certain he would have indeed."

"And you know why he could kick anyone's ass?" the girl then turned to look at him wiggling her eyebrows as if daring Giles to ask 'why?'

Giles knowing he really wouldn't be able to get out of this just sighed and asked "Why exactly can your… umm… friend kick anyone's… umm… back side?"

The Chinese girl smirked at Giles's use of language before leaning forward and stating in a conspiratorial tone, making Giles actually bend forward a little to hear her say in a voice slightly above that of a whisper, "Because… he knows Kung Fu."

Giles looked at the girl for a few seconds and then just nodded his head slowly before standing up straight. He watched as the girl after finishing in that 'matter-of-fact' tone voice of hers, complimented the end of that statement by shooting the old Englishman a 'you're sooo lucky' look before finally turning back to face the front of the queue with a humph.

Even though the food court was packed with people and there was noise coming from all around, there was one particular noise which Giles was finding less tolerable by the second.

POP… sounds of someone chewing something… POP… the sounds of someone chewing something again… POP.

It was the girl in the yellow trench coat standing in front of him who kept on popping her bubblegum each and every few seconds. It should be mentioned that that popping of the gum had coincided with the throbbing of the vein on the side of Giles's head. If someone was too look closely… one would swear that the veins on the sides of the watchers head looked as though they were just waiting to burst. But then again, not many people have ever met a watcher and much less know about their rather unyielding patience.

An elderly gentleman who was standing in front of the girl just turned to look at her with a scowl and said, "Young lady… Do you have to keep doing that? It's very annoying."

In reply, even though Giles couldn't see the young girl's face any longer, he could have sworn she had probably cocked one eyebrow at the man in front of her before she did what she did, which was to lean forward and blow a huge bubble right in the man's face before saying. "It's a free country … get used to it," was her smug reply.

The man decided it was no use arguing with the teenager, and therefore just scowled at the girl, which if Giles was a gambler he would have put the money on the scowl not having any impact on the girl. As the elderly gentleman finally turned to face the counter, Giles wondered if being a bit of a nuisance was one of the girl's defining qualities. Or was it the bright yellow trench coat. 'Why in the world would anyone wear a yellow trench coat anyways?' he asked himself as the old watcher found a question even he could not answer for once.

The only thing he could be thankful of was that Xander or Spike wasn't around to see him back down from a confrontation with a teenager with extremely bright choice of clothing. They would never let him live this down. He could almost see them now… rolling on the floor laughing their hearts out while pointing a finger at him. Yes… this was definitely one incident he was never going to bring up in front of anyone… ever again. His only hope was that Dawn hadn't seen anything.

He was more than relieved when not his turn, but the girl's turn came up and she made her order, took her food, paid for it and left the counter. He thought there were most probably a few others in the queue who were glad that the girl had finally left the queue as well. As he ordered his and Dawn's food, his eyes searched the food court to see where Dawn had seated herself. Upon finding her he smiled at the younger Summers who in turn smiled back. It was then he noticed exactly where dawn had seated herself… right next to that obnoxious Asian girl in the yellow trench coat. He hoped that the girl would be too busy with her food to notice that he was going to be sitting in the next table.

As he took his and Dawn's tray of food and headed towards Dawn's direction, to his dismay the Chinese girl noticed him and scowled at him for… well… for scowl's sake he guessed. He just smiled… somewhat forcibly at the girl in return and sat down beside Dawn who simply cocked an eyebrow at him in question of what was going on with him and the girl at the next table. Giles just waved it off as nothing and then sat down to have dinner.

Giles watched as Dawn hungrily ate from her plate and realised the girl must have been starving. He cursed internally for not taking better care of Dawn while being on this trip, but then again even they couldn't have known that the trip from L.A. was going to be this taxing.

"We'll head back to the motel after this… I need to call Buffy and see how things are going back in Sunnydale. I also needed to speak to Willow about the girl," Giles told Dawn as they ate.

The younger Summers looked up at the older Englishman and asked after swallowing a mouthful of food, "what about the girl do you need to talk to Willow about?"

Giles shrugged his shoulders before stating, "The usual actually… where she is living… who her guardians are..." he paused for a second before continuing, "I just… want to be prepared… know everything there is to know about the people who have taken her in… in case we need to speak to them."

"Wouldn't like talking to the girl be enough?" Dawn asked, and Giles could tell from the tone of her voice that she was more than ready to speak to the girl… but a little hesitant to speak to her guardians. The fact that she may have to assist Giles in explaining their out-of-the-world but true story to a principal of a boarding school… or was that a private school… was the least bit appealing.

"We will speak to the girl of course… but just in case we fail to reach her, we may need to explain the situation to her legal guardian." He paused for a second before admitting, "Though it is something that I would rather avoid."

"K," Dawn shrugged in agreement before returning her attention to her dinner. After a little while, she asked again, "so… when do you want to go meet her?"

"As soon as we talk to Willow," Giles told the younger Summers. He glanced at his watch to see that it was around seven in the evening and hoped that going to the young potential's place at around 8-ish would not be too much of an inconvenience to the girl or her house or flatmates. "I think we should talk to the girl as soon as possible." Dawn just nodded in agreement.

"The quicker she knows about everything the better," Dawn added with a nod of her head. The both of them resumed having their food.

"Hey queue-jumper," a voice called out from the side and Dawn looked up to see Giles rolling his eyes and then turn to look at the girl in the yellow trench coat. "Can ya pass me the sauce?" she picked up the bottle of sauce on her table and shook it for emphasis before saying, "I'm out."

Giles just smiled forcefully at the girl before passing the bottle of sauce from his table. Giles looked back at Dawn to see her mouthing the words in question, "queue-jumper?"

Giles once again waved it off as nothing and returned his attention to his own plate of food again. Dawn could tell that her sister's mentor was indeed ticked about what the girl at the next table had called him but before she could prod any further, someone walking into the food court and in her direction made her catch her breath… literally.

It was a tall young man, most probably in his early twenties, with shaggy brown hair, a pair of black sunglasses, a smug smile which reminded her a little too much of Spike, not to mention a long brown leather duster flowing behind him. He passed her table and as he did, he shot her a smile and Dawn couldn't help but smile back, which was the time she realised she still had food in her mouth. She closed her lips shut and kept smiling at the man as he passed her table, and went on to sit next to the young Chinese American girl at the next table.

"Hiya Gumbo," the young Chinese girl greeted the man as he plopped down in the seat next to her. Dawn wondered briefly what kind of name was Gumbo.

"Ello p'tite," the man said putting an arm around the young girl, and Dawn couldn't help but feel a little jealous. She shook her head to clear off the hold the green-eyed monster had on her as she realised the girl must be like a little sister. Actually, looking at the two, she suddenly was reminded of how much they looked like a different version of herself and Spike. She returned her attention to the food on her plate but for some reason… she couldn't help herself as she tried to listen to the conversation between the two in the next table.

"Gambit jus' wanted t' come down and let y' know dat Gambit finally got wat he came fo'. So if y' be done, Gambit will be more dan happy t' give y' a ride back to the institute."

The first thing Dawn had detected was of course the man's good looks, but then she heard the man talk and she was certain it was an accent she had never heard before. And the man had a very particular accent indeed. She even watched as Giles gave the duo a slight glance… as if he himself was also trying to determine where the man was from.

"Yup… sure thing," the Asian girl said looking at her plate. She turned to look at him directly and asked with an amused grin, "So… what did ya get for Rogue?"

The man just smirked at the young Chinese girl and said in a smug tone, "well p'tite, dat's fo' Gambit t' know an' Rogue t' find out non?"

"Oh come on Gumbo," Dawn heard the Chinese girl ask him pleadingly, "ya know I can keep a secret when it really counts."

Dawn looked to the side in time to see the man named Gumbo literally cock one eyebrow and lean close to the Asian girl before saying, "if Gambit had a penny fo' every t'me y' say dat, Gambit don' t'ink would he would need to go t'rough Warren's wallet all de t'me." The Asian girl giggled and shook her head as she swatted the man in the hand eliciting a slight chuckle from the man.

"Hey," the Asian girl then said, "maybe this time she will only throw you against the wall and not out a window."

The cocky smile was replaced with a frown for a split second before the smug smile returned again as the man known as Gambit said. "Trust Gambit p'tite, it's all a sign of how much Rogue loves dis Cajun."

Dawn realised she had been staring at the duo for some time when she noticed the man in the brown trench coat casting a glance in her direction. Dawn quickly averted her eyes and looked towards Giles who looked almost pleased that the duo was leaving. The young Asian girl actually stopped next to their table, and Dawn saw that Giles started to look miserable… more miserable than she had seen him during an apocalypse.

"Bye queue-jumper… try not to jump any more queues," Dawn was a little shocked to see someone she didn't even know speak to Giles in an almost scolding tone. "The next person might not be as forgiving as me."

Giles just groaned aloud before he smiled falsely at the young girl and said, "Yes… I will remember that."

It seemed as though she was about to say something else when the guy in the brown duster just dragged her along saying "Gambit t'inks y' tortured someone enough fo' t'day". She looked ready to protest but she just sighed in defeat and went along with the man in the brown trench coat mumbling something about how she never got to have any real fun. The man however bowed slightly at Giles and Dawn before finally heading for the exit.

Dawn watched the duo leave the food court and then turned towards Giles with a smile before asking him in a teasing tone, "Wow… You sure don't waste time in making new friends huh?"

"Dawn," Giles pinched the bridge of his nose before saying. "For as long as I live, please, never mention that obnoxious girl… ever… again."

Dawn just laughed out loud as both of them finally got up from the chair and headed out of the food court and out of the mall. As they were heading out, a thought came to Dawn and she told Giles, "Hey Giles," Giles turned to look at the younger Summers, "wouldn't it be weird if the Jubilation Lee we are looking for actually turned out to be your new friend."

The expression that came over Giles's face was enough to leave Dawn nearly fall back on the ground laughing as he went on to say in an almost pleading tone. "Dawn, I love you like you were my own daughter, but please… please do not tempt the fates like that."

Then the younger Summers laughed. Giles chuckled a little himself as they made their way back to the hotel. Even though Dawn was laughing at his expense, Giles felt someone relieved that they actually found something to be happy about. He remembered the last few weeks and realised they needed more moments such as this… a moment where they could just share a laugh.

* * *

Back at the motel, Giles stepped out of his motel room to make a call to Sunnydale from a payphone he had seen outside. Before he had left Sunnydale, he had asked Willow to see if she can narrow down exactly which school in Bayville the girl was going to. After all, even the most powerful seers don't have the power to see everything down to the last detail. While the seer back in England was able to determine that the girl, Jubilation Lee was indeed living somewhere in Bayville and was living at a school as well as the fact that she had been taken in by the principal of the school, the person had however, not been able to determine the girl's exact location within the small town. 

And therefore the task of narrowing down the girl's location had fallen on the shoulders of Willow Rosenberg. For she was one of the only people he knew of who could use both magical and technological means to find anyone she put her mind to. As he picked up the receiver and dialled the number to the Summers Residence in Sunnydale, he chanced a look at his watch and hoped either Willow herself or Buffy would be around to pick up the phone. The last thing he needed was Andrew getting a hold of the phone and starting on about one of his longwinded tales about how the day had progressed… umm… no… in his case he would most probably find something to whine about. And that was something he was definitely not in the mood for.

As the receiver at the other end was picked up, He was pleased to hear Willow herself answer the phone. "Willow," Giles greeted the Wicca at the other end, "this is Giles… how are things in Sunnydale?"

"Everything's just peachy," he heard the redheaded witch at the other end reply in what seemed like a nervous tone.

"Willow… I know you better than this… tell me if…" Giles started but was quickly cut off by Willow at the other end.

"Giles… trust me… everything is ok here… reason I'm up is because I was looking for stuff about your new potential… and…well… what I found…" the redheaded Wicca started but again was cut of by Giles.

"Willow… is she alright?" Giles asked a little concerned as the last words left the redhead's mouth.

"Oh no… no… Giles," Willow assured the older Englishman. "She's fine… it's just that when I was looking for her… I of course… found her and well… umm… let's just say… I found some stuff about her… lots of… very interesting stuff in fact."

Giles frowned at the tone in Willow's voice as he asked, "what exactly did you find Willow?"

* * *

Back in Sunnydale, Willow Rosenberg was sitting in front of her laptop staring at a large picture of the Xavier Institute for the Gifted on the monitor in a news article with the captions "House of Heroes… or Monsters?" in large bold letters at the top of the page as the main headline. She was holding the phone receiver to her ear in one hand as she thought of how she was going to explain what she found on the internet. 

"Umm… Giles," the redheaded witch finally spoke into the phone. "Let's just say saying Jubilation Lee has a… umm… very interesting family and she goes to an even more interesting school… would probably be an understatement."

Buffy Summers who had at that moment been sitting beside her best friend and reading up on the many articles Willow had found relating to the school Jubilation Lee was staying at nodded in agreement with a "uh-huh" as she read one more article about the infamous band of heroes known as the X-Men before stating quietly, "Oh Yeah… interesting is definitely an understatement at this point."

* * *

Back in Bayville, Giles frowned even more as none of what Willow was saying at the other end actually made any sense. Frustratingly he finally asked, "Willow… would you please just enlighten me as to what is so fascinating about this girl and the school she is staying at?" 

The redheaded witch from the other end didn't answer his question. She simply responded with a question of her own. "Umm… Giles… have you ever heard of the X-Men?"

Giles couldn't help himself as one of his eyebrows shot up to meet his hairline in obvious surprise.

* * *

**To Be Continued…**

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Ok, there you have it people. Second chapter completed. Hope you are enjoying it so far. Yeah… I know Giles and Dawn both bumped into X-Men's resident firecracker and didn't even know it. Don't worry, they will… soon. And then the fun will really begin. Please tune in for the next update which should be in about a week as well. 

Please **REVIEW** this chapter before moving on to the next one. I love reviews… and the more reviews I get the sooner I'll try and update.


	3. First Impression?

**Firstly… to my Reviewers: -**

Sean Malloy-1 – I'm glad that you are enjoying this fan-fiction… as for when did Gambit join the X-Men… it will be revealed in future chapters.

The Uncanny R-Man – hey dude… how's it going? I'm really glad that you think this story is very good. As for your comment about Gambit and Jubilee looking a lot like their comic book counterparts, I actually had no choice in the matter. I mean, think about it, Jubilee had only a handful of scenes in the X-Men Evolution show and Gambit was there only for a few episodes. Not really enough to know everything there is to know about a character. This is why I had to rely on what I knew about their character profiles and personality from the comic books… with a bit of my own twists thrown in… for example in the case of their origins. Since the show didn't spend much time in explaining the origins of the characters… I can put my own twist to it in order to meet the story's criteria. Cool huh? Hehe. Anyways… I hope you'll keep on reading this. Enjoy.

JA Baker – hey man… thanks for reading and reviewing my story. I'm sorry if you thought I took much time introducing the characters of Buffy, but that was somewhat unavoidable. As a fan-fiction writer, I know very well how much writers are tempted to toy with the characters of one show and basically mould them into their own image. I just wanted to make sure everyone who reads this fan-fiction know that I tried my best to avoid such a thing and that their favourite characters will be acting exactly the way they would have expected the characters to act were this the original show. Thanks again for reading this story. Hope you enjoy the rest.

RogueFanKC – hey… thanks very much for reviewing. You know… I just finished reading the latest chapter of your For Truth, Justice, and the Last cup of BA's Coffee. I think I left a page long review. I just love that story. Or any story that comes out of your head. Hehe. Anyways… I'm glad you see a lot of potential for this story. As for Jubilee seeming a little OC… well… like I was telling Uncanny R-Man… Jubilee had just a few scenes in the X-Men Evolution show… and therefore I had to take the liberty of taking as much as possible from the comic-verse as well as throw a bit of my own twists and turn into her character so that she fit the criteria of the story. Hope this won't keep you from enjoying the story. If it however looks like I'm going overboard with any character… please mail me and let me know. I'd rather fix a problem as it appears than let my story suffer in the end for it. Thanks again for reviewing. Take care. Enjoy the latest chapter.

Dreamweaver – hey man… thanks for saying the last chapter managed to 'ding' your interest. Now if the third chapter was going to be a decider on whether you'll continue to read this story or not… then I think I might just loose you as a reader. Cause, the thing is I like to take my time with my stories. The first few chapters will always deal with my characters… who they are, what they are, where they are, how they are… etc. I need to address a lot of issues about the characters and make sure they are all settled in for the ride I'm about to take them through. Hehe. Anyways… I hope even if you find this story progressing a little slowly, you'll keep on reading it. I'll guarantee that in the end… you won't be disappointed.

Whylime – hey… thanks for taking the time to read and reviewing my fic. And thank you for pointing out the mistakes I'm making in the writing of the story. My first language is not English… though I do have a very good command of the language, but sometimes I just end up making a few mistakes regardless of how hard I try to avoid them. But let me know in the future when you find something stylistically wrong with the way my story is written. It would help me improve my work as well as make sure I don't end up making the same mistake in the future. And as for Buffyverse's take on people born with an X-Gene… well… just stick around and find out exactly how much Giles knows about mutants. Take care. Enjoy.

WhiteWolf 3 – hey… thanks for pointing out the time differences. I don't live in the States and I've always been bad with time zones and stuff like that… I already fixed that paragraph so I hope you'll be satisfied. Thank you once again for reading my story… hope you enjoy this latest chapter.

Rachel –hey… thanks for reviewing. I'm sorry you thought Jubilee was acting a little rude. But there's a reason why she's acting this way and that'll all be explained in the story in later chapters. But trust me; she will not be acting rude and obnoxious all the time. Hope you enjoy this new chapter.

Lucinda – well… whether Jubilee is going to be in for a shock or not… you're just going to have to wait for chapter 4 to find out. Hehe. Why chapter 4? Just read this newest chapter and find out.

Darklight – hey Darklight, thanks for your reviews man. I'm glad you like the story so much. I'll try my best at making sure I keep the chapters coming. Take care. Enjoy the latest chapter.

Agent-G – dude… you brought up a lot of valid points… but trust me when I say this, no matter what decision Jubilee makes, whether it is to stay back at the mansion or to go down to Sunnydale with Giles and Dawn, there WILL BE a valid reason behind her decision. I'll make sure of that. So just keep on reading to find out exactly what will happen in the next few chapters which will determine that decision for our young champion. Thanks again for the reviews. Hope you enjoy this latest chapter.

Special Thanks to texaswookie and X-Spider for their reviews. Please enjoy this latest chapter and review.

* * *

**DISCLAIMER** – The characters of Angel and Buffy the Vampire Slayer belong to Joss Whedon, the WB, UPN, Mutant Enemy, Twentieth Century Fox and others whom I don't know about. The characters of X-Men Evolution are owned by Marvel. I am not in any way affiliated with any of the groups or organizations that hold rights over the characters of Angel or Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or X-Men Evolution and neither have I been authorized to write the following story. This is a non-profit fan based effort and no copyright infringement is intended. So, umm… please don't sue.

* * *

**Chapter 3: First Impression?**

Dawn Summers had been flipping through the different channels on the television that had been provided into her and Giles's room in search of something… anything good to watch. In the end she settled on an old episode of the Friends TV Series and though she had seen the third season episode probably a hundred times over before… she still couldn't help but smile here and there at the different antics of the characters on the small screen.

She momentarily glanced at the door and wondered what was taking Giles so long. It had been nearly fifteen minutes since he had stepped out of the room to make the call to Sunnydale and see if everyone was alright or not. Not to mention, check in with Willow and find out if she had narrowed down the present address of the potential slayer. worn out as she was, she would have liked nothing better than to crawl into bed and snooze at least till the next apocalypse, but she had made a promise to herself that she was in some ways going to be helpful with the recruitment of this particular potential and she was not going to take any breaks until they had found the girl, spoken to her, explained things to her, and quite hopefully, brought her back to Sunnydale with her.

As she mused over what the girl would be like and how she was going to introduce herself and Giles to her… not to mention how they were going to have the talk about demons and vampires and apocalypses without sounding like escaped mental patients… the door to the motel room swung open and Rupert Giles walked in deep in thought.

Dawn eyed the expression on Giles's face as he greeted her with an automatic smile that never reached his eyes and thinking only the worst… jumped out of bed… literally and stammered out, "Giles… w-what's wrong? Is everyone alright?"

Giles eyed the noticeably anxious teenager and instantly shook his head to clear away any negative thoughts the younger Summers may have been having at that moment. Dawn visibly relaxed as she let out a deep breath in relief and finally asked how things were back in Sunnydale and if they had an address of the potential yet.

The older Englishman moved into the room and flopped down on his own bed as he told Dawn that everyone was alright back in Sunnydale and that Buffy said she should keep in mind to by no means go outside, especially at night without a jacket or a coat or something of the sorts, as the East Coast tends to be a lot more colder than the West Coast where Sunnydale was located.

Dawn just rolled her eyes at her sister's overprotective habits and at that last statement before moving to take a seat on her own bed opposite to Giles's. "So," she started as she faced the older Englishman, "did Willow find out which school the potential was staying at?"

"Umm... yes," Giles affirmed, "she did indeed."

Dawn, once again noticing the slight hesitation in Giles's tone became curious as to what was going on as well as a little concerned and therefore asked, "Giles… what's wrong?"

Internally however, she was hoping that nothing had happened to the potential slayer. Losing someone they had spent so much time and effort to find would perhaps appear as their first real defeat in this ongoing battle against the First Evil.

Giles sighed. He looked up to see the concerned gaze of the younger Summers on him and tried to think how he was going to tell the teenager that the girl they had traveled roughly nine hours to locate was living with in all probability the most recognized assemblage of heroes known the world over. How was he going to explain to her that after listening to what Willow had found from her investigation on what the mutant band of superheroes… the X-Men were capable of… he had come to the conclusion that the girl… Jubilation Lee… was safe and sound exactly where she was at that moment? How was he going to put in plain words… that they will not be meeting up with the girl and will most definitely not be asking her to come back to Sunnydale with them?

Then he decided that the best way was the British way... to be straightforward and to be blunt.

"Willow did find the potential… she's safe and we also have an address," Giles started and Dawn immediately got up saying, "So, what're we waiting for… lets go and talk to her."

The old Watcher held up his hand to stop Dawn from heading towards the door. "Well… uh… it's not really that simple." That did not come out blunt… he had to remind himself… and neither did it come out British.

Dawn frowned as her sister's mentor said that last statement. When Giles asked Dawn to take a seat, the younger Summers did so reluctantly. The older man looked at the look on Dawn's face and finally realized why Buffy always called the Brits dodgy… because… in all honesty, he was finding himself acting completely dodgy at that moment.

* * *

"Wow!" It was the only word she could think of at that moment that did justice to the information Willow had provided via Giles about the young potential. 

An orphan taken in by heroes known the world over, learning their ways and living with them. It all just sounded like one fantastic tale meant to be printed and sold like one of those best-sellers like the Harry Potter books or Lord of The Ring.

She took in a deep breath, thought of some other way she could respond to what Giles had just told her and simply repeated the word, "wow!"… Once again. And then she frowned when she realized she was starting to think like Andrew. She reminded herself that she was going to have to stop or rather minimize hanging around the self-proclaimed former villain… though nerd describes him better… once they got back home. Obviously his 'nerdiness'... if there was ever such a word… was rubbing off on her. But then again, it was not as though anyone else had time for her. Everyone was in some ways or another busy planning for the upcoming and inevitable confrontation against the First Evil.

"Yes," Giles smiled slightly… completely missing the expression of sadness that had passed over Dawn's face as the thought of how coming to Bayville to recruit this Jubilation Lee was one of the first time she had actually felt as though she finally found a place… a role… albeit a small role but a role nonetheless to play in this war. Dawn shook out of her reverie as Giles finished saying, "It is a very fascinating tale indeed."

"I mean… if we weren't already used to dealing with the unnatural… I would have had a really hard time digesting this story," Dawn… quickly getting into the conversation declared sarcastically… something which was not lost on Giles.

They sat in quiet contemplation of what they had discovered about the potential for a few minutes. Dawn had been told everything. Not only about the young potential… but also Giles's view on why they should just leave the girl alone as in his opinion she was safest where she was… with the X-Men. The mutant band of heroes already had problems of their own to deal with; the last thing they needed was to get them involved in a battle against the 'real' forces of darkness. But after much thought and consideration… Dawn Summers couldn't bring her to agree with Giles's decision to leave the girl alone.

"Giles," she spoke up as the older Englishman turned his attention to the young girl, "I still think we should go and speak to her."

"Dawn…" Giles started but the younger Summers just held up her hand so that she would be allowed to explain herself. And the elderly man nodded and just waited for her to continue.

"Giles… think about it… I know you think she is safe staying with the X-men… but I think she deserves the right to know what may happen to her," Dawn paused for a moment to see if her words were having any effect on the older Englishman. She sighed when she saw her words had achieved very little result.

"Dawn," Giles started, "I told you… I do not want the X-Men involved in our battle."

"Why not?" Dawn nearly shouted out but calmed herself before she did or say anything which the Watcher may consider disrespectful. "I mean… we sure as hell can use the help."

Giles glared at the younger Summers for a brief instant for her use of language which was met with a somewhat guilty look before he stated his reasons. " Dawn," he started again, "the reason I do not want them involved in our fight Dawn… is," he paused for a second to think how he was going to place his thoughts into words before finally saying, "The thing with demons Dawn… once you start fighting them… once you know of their existence… there is no turning back. You'll be fighting against demonic creatures and otherworldly beings for as long as you live. You will always have to be careful about any and all kind of demonic threats… and such." He let his words sink in before finally asking the young teenager. "Do you really think we have the right to impose that kind of life on anyone?"

Dawn swallowed the lump in her throat before lowering her eyes to the floor and finally shaking her head saying "no".

Satisfied, Giles was about to turn his attention to the television when Dawn brought his attention back on her by saying, "But… I still think we should contact her and let her know exactly what is going on."

When it looked as though Giles was about to argue… again, Dawn just looked at him pleadingly to stop the older Englishman from saying anything and requested with her eyes that he hear her out.

"Think about it Giles, ok… we don't want the X-Men involved… fine by me. But the girl needs to know… in case the First Evil sends its bringers or followers for her. I think we owe her that much." When Dawn saw that she was breaking through Giles's defenses… even though it was just a little, she pressed on. "lets say for example we go back tomorrow… without talking to the girl, and after we leave," she paused for a second before saying something that was already making bile rise up in her throat, "something happens to the girl… maybe she's attacked… or…," she paused once again, "killed." She took a deep breath before stating her point, "Do you really think the X-Men will just let that go? Giles… they are supposed to be heroes for crying out loud… they are going to track down each and every lead they could find just to get to the culprits." She looked directly into the eyes of the older Englishman and said, "at least… this way… if anything happens, they will know where and what to look for." Dawn finally stood up from her seated position on the bed before stating, "I think it is the least we can do for them," she smiled at the older Englishman before saying, "from one family of heroes to another."

Giles looked at the young teenager and suddenly realized... Dawn Summers had grown up. And he had completely missed it. Just about a year he was not around and the girl whom they had to save from getting turned by a vampire just last Halloween… had grown up into a mature woman. He didn't know whether to feel sad, that the girl had to grow up that quickly or proud because he could almost see the person she was becoming. As he was contemplating this, his mind went over everything Dawn had pointed out. He sighed in defeat when he realized she had a few crucial points.

He finally got up from the bed and looked at the young teenager in front before shrugging his shoulders and saying, "well… I guess having a second front ready to take up the fight in case we fail will be…" he never got to finish his sentence as Dawn already knowing what his statement meant pulled him into a tight hug before finally letting go. Silent communication passed between the two who… though not biologically related, were in more ways father and daughter than most people would think of. Within the next few minutes, they had already stepped out of their motel and had already hailed a cab and were on their way to Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters.

* * *

The duo arrived at the gates of Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters about thirty minutes from the time they left their motel room, and found that the Taxi driver was more than content to just seize his fare from them and be on his way after casting a most disgusted look at the mansion. As far away as he possibly could from the school which in his twisted opinion probably housed nothing more than people who probably had no right to exist in the first place. Dawn and Giles may spend half the time of their lives battling demons and monsters of all sorts, they were however, not ignorant about how half the people in the world viewed people born with the mutant gene… even people who have used their powers for the benefit of others like the X-Men. 

"Gee," Dawn commented as she watched the cab's taillights fade away in the distance, "wonder what he'll do if he ever knew about real demons and vampires."

"Let's hope he never does," Giles said as he too stared at the disappearing tail of the cab. He finally shook his head before the both of them turned their sights on to the large mansion they could see in the distance looming over everything. It was beyond a shadow of a doubt a majestic looking structure. Quiet possibly one of the best they had ever laid eyes upon. Giles saw the intercom at the side of the gate and pressed the buzzer twice before waiting for someone to answer it. A few seconds later a female voice could be heard over the intercom as the person greeted, "good evening, how may we help?"

Giles bent down to speak into the intercom, although there really was no need for it as he explained, "Miss… My name is Rupert Giles and I have with me Dawn Summers who happens to be a family friend of mine… I am extremely sorry for bothering you at this late hour… but we came here all the way from Los Angeles and we were hoping we could speak to a Jubilation Lee. I believe she is a student living at your school."

"She is indeed," the woman at the other end could be heard admitting. "Please state why you wish to speak to the child and I will go and see if she is available at the moment."

"Unfortunately what I have to discuss is of a most private matter," Giles said letting through as much regret as he could through his voice. "But I assure you it is imperative that we speak to Miss Jubilation Lee tonight. We are in fact leaving Bayville and heading back to Los Angeles at daybreak tomorrow. We just need about fifteen minutes of Ms Lee's time."

There was a pause before finally the female voice at the other end answered, "Jubilation Lee is out with a friend at this instant… but you may come in and have a seat. The headmaster of the institute would like to speak with you."

And with that, the gates of the most well-known haven for mutants in the world opened and both Giles and Dawn exchanged a somewhat nervous look before taking a step onto the institute grounds.

As they walked up to the main doors, they were surprised to see that none of the children or students they had expected to see were anywhere in sight. Well, it was most likely that they were all indoors watching some of their favourite shows. That reminded Dawn that she was missing a good show on NBC. As they approached the large front doors, it opened to reveal a beautiful African woman coming out to welcome them. Both Giles and Dawn were… however… a little stupefied at the appearance of the woman. After taking in the woman's perfect features and elegant white hair, the only word the two could think of at that moment which did the woman justice was 'goddess'.

"Welcome to the Xavier's Institute for Gifted Youngsters," the woman greeted them with a polite smile. "I am Ororo Monroe."

"Good evening Ma'am," Giles greeted the woman in return as he shook her hand. "My name is Rupert Giles, and this is Dawn Summers," he finished gesturing towards Dawn who just smiled and waved a hand in greeted at the African woman.

Ororo smiled back at the teenager before asking them to follow her into the headmaster's office. As they walked behind the beautiful woman, both Dawn and Giles couldn't help themselves as they took in the sights inside the mansion, from the rare paintings to statues at each and every corner. But then noticed a few rough patches here and there, and places where there were signs of recent construction done and wondered what had caused them. Ororo stopped in front of a double door and before she could raise her hands to knock, a very cultured voice called out from the other side and asked for the trio to enter. Both Dawn and Giles exchanged a curious glance at this but shrugged it off as nothing before finally being led into an eloquently decorated office with a bald but pleasant looking man smiling at the both of them from behind a large desk.

It was when the man rolled out from around the desk in a wheelchair did they become aware of the man's handicap. He held out his hand to shake Giles's hand as he introduced himself, "Good Evening, I am Professor Charles Xavier, headmaster of this Institute".

Rupert Giles shook the man's hand and introduced himself before the Professor turned to shake Dawn's hand as well. After introductions were made and Giles and Dawn took their seats at the front of the table with the Professor taking his place behind the desk again and Ororo just standing somewhere to the side… some light conversation began. The Professor asked Giles whether he would like some tea or not… which Giles appreciatively accepted and Ororo left the room to bring the drinks. As soon as Ororo was out of the room, the Professor turned to look at Giles and at long last asked, "So, Mr Giles… why is it that you need to speak with Jubilation Lee… if you don't mind my asking?"

Before Giles could say anything about how what he needed to say was only for Jubilation Lee to hear, the Professor held up a hand to prevent him from doing so and explained, "Mr Giles, as you very well know… I am at the moment Jubilation Lee's legal guardian in every sense… therefore anything you have to say to her, I am sorry to say… you will need to run it by me first."

Giles hesitated for a second before smiling forcefully and responding politely, "I wish it was that simple a thing to discuss."

"Which is why I would like you to run it by me first," the Professor stated. He paused for a moment before adding in somewhat of a solemn tone, "The last one year has been very hard on young Jubilation". To which Giles nodded his head in understanding as the Professor continued, "It took us a while… but we were able to bring Jubilee out of her self-imposed shell. The very last thing I would want her to go through would be to hear something which will just make her retreat into that very shell again."

Giles took in those words and reflected mutely to himself for a few seconds when Dawn asked something completely out of the blue to the man behind the desk, "So, can I ask you something?" when the Professor gestured for Dawn to continue, Dawn asked, "are you a mutant as well?"

The Professor just smiled and said, "Yes Dawn, I am indeed."

To this Dawn simply smiled and said "Cool".

"You know," Dawn stated excitedly, "I've never met a mutant before, so… umm… what kind of powers do you have, if you don't mind my asking?"

The Professor smiled at the slightly thrilled youngster and hesitated… if merely for a flash before declaring, "I am a telepath". This made both Giles and Dawn a little stiff but the Professor assured them both by saying, "please… do not alarm yourself. I do not go into the minds of other individuals without their permission… unless of course the situation left me with no choice." He leaned forward and whispered conspiratorially… yet with a slight amount of amusement, "If I did that all the time, do you really think you'd actually need to tell me anything."

Dawn smiled at the elderly man and decided to put her trust in him… for some reason, just looking into the man's eyes made her want to tell him everything about her life back in Sunnydale, her problems, her fears, her doubts, everything. 'Damn, he must make one heck of a headmaster,' Dawn mused.

At that precise moment, Ororo Monroe came back into the room with a tray of tea and some cookies which she offered to Dawn. "I called and asked Jubilee to come back to the institute as soon as she is done… apparently on the way back from the mall she had a craving for some of the Ice-cream from Haagen-Dazs… and she also needed to pick up some movies for the other children to enjoy over the weekend… she should be back in about fifteen minutes," Ororo mentioned with a smile as she took a seat herself at one corner.

"So Mr Giles," the Professor asked as they both drank tea. "What exactly do you do?"

"Between jobs at the moment actually," Giles said with a smile. This wasn't exactly that far from the truth. The Watcher's Council may not formally be around any longer, but he was still Buffy's last official watcher, and it seems that he had just gotten himself back into the thick of things. He wondered for a brief second how a world he had retired from kept pulling him back inside. Looked as though the fates were trying to tell him he will probably always be needed in this fight.

They talked for a little bit more with the Professor explaining the reasons behind him opening the school where mutants could learn to use their powers for the good of mankind. He seemed genuinely interested in helping these kids and Giles could tell that a few years ago, he wouldn't have been so freely talking about what exactly went on in this school, but ever since the exposure of mutants to the general public, this institute has held back very little on the fact that this school was indeed some form of sanctuary for mutants. Not to mention the home of the now world renowned mutant super-hero team known as the X-Men. Giles could however tell that there were a few things the Professor and Ororo Monroe were keeping to themselves but decided that everyone had a right to keep their secrets. Finally after some idle chat, the Professor once again brought the matter of why the two individuals from Sunnydale were in Bayville seeking Jubilation Lee. Giles didn't want to take the chance of saying something to cover why they were really there up and having the Professor pick up on it, therefore he decided on the next course of action, "I think I should explain everything when Jubilation Lee gets here."

The Professor though seeming a little reluctant finally nodded his head in agreement. He still wanted to find out exactly what it was the two individuals wanted to speak to Jubilee about before letting them talk to her but it seems as though the Englishman seated opposite to him seemed determined to only let Jubilee know what it was they were here to say.

"Then I hope you wouldn't mind we both sitting in when you are having this conversation with Jubilation Lee," the Professor suggested and even though he could tell that Giles was having an internal debate about whether the Professor should be privy to the information he was carrying, a sigh made however told the Professor that the man had agreed, albeit a bit reluctantly, to let the two adults sit there with Jubilation Lee while he had his say.

The Professor then smiled at the Englishman before looking over both the shoulders of Dawn and Giles at the locked office door and saying, "looks as though you may not have to wait that long… come in Jubilee."

The door swung open and both Rupert Giles and Dawn turned to greet Jubilation Lee who was in the middle of saying something like, "you know… it still freaks me out every time you do that."

Both Rupert Giles and Dawn saw the teenager, and Jubilation Lee saw Rupert Giles and Dawn, and both parties couldn't help themselves from letting their jaws hit the floor.

Jubilee was however quicker to recover than the two from Sunnydale as she put her hands on her hips, glared at the older Englishman she recognised from the mall and said, "Hey… it's the queue-jumper."

"YOU!" Giles nearly shouted out as he saw the all too familiar Chinese American girl with the familiar bright yellow trench coat and that annoying chewing gum in her mouth from the food court standing in front of him. He then turned to give Dawn a 'this is your entire fault' look to which Dawn just shrugged confusedly and asked "what?"

Both the Professor and Ororo shared a cocked-eyebrow look with each other before turning their attention towards Giles and asking in unison, "queue-jumper?"

**

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To Be Continued...**

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Oh Yeah… what Giles thought would be his first meeting with Jubilation Lee, is turning out to be his second. Sorry for ending this chapter in a cliff-hanger. But I wanted Giles and Dawn's meeting with Jubilation Lee to be different than that of that meeting they just had with Professor X and Storm. And I'm sorry if anyone thinks this story is progressing at a very slow pace. The word document that contains the entire plot of the story has about 67 bullet points that need to be addressed as this story progresses. Trust me when I say this, even I wouldn't want to read this story if just one of these points were not addressed through the course of the story.

Anyways, next Chapter… Dawn gets to meet a few of the members of the X-Men… plus a few of the New Mutants. Also… coming up in the next chapter… the talk will take place… no… not that talk. The talk where Giles makes the 'one girl in all the world yadda yadda yadda' speech. How will Jubilee react to it? More importantly, how will the Professor and Storm react to this? Will the professor refer Giles and Dawn to the same mental institution that Wanda was kept at? Will Gambit try to flirt with Dawn only to get thrown into wall by Rogue? Find out next chapter coming to you in another week or so.

Before you go however… **PLEASE REVIEW**. The more reviews I get… the faster I feel like writing and posting a new chapter. So **REVIEW… REVIEW… REVIEW AWAY.**


	4. Explanations

**Firstly… To My Reviewers**

Peace – thanks for reviewing man… as of now… I don't have any pairings in mind except for those already from canon. But keep reading and I might just surprise you with a few surprise pairings.

heartsyhawk – I'm really glad that you liked my story so much. A review like yours really motivates a guy to put in more effort while writing the next chapter. and thank you very much for helping out with the Gambit dialogue. I was going to mail you but I didn't really have much accented dialogue this chapter and there did not feel like bothering you. But yeah… I'll definitely mail you if I have any trouble with the accents. Check out the accents this chapter and let me know if they are alright or not. Mail me if I've made any mistakes and I'll make the necessary corrections. Take care and I hope you enjoy this latest chapter. Oh… and update Back in Diapers soon.

darkstorm5000 – hey… thanks for reviewing my fic the last time around. I hope you'll enjoy this chapter as well. Yes... I had to give Dawn a more mature role because… to tell you the truth… she actually has matured a lot from her whiny little sisters days in season 5 and 6. I think we saw that Dawn was all grown up the moment she confronted Buffy and told her to face the facts at the end of season six. Dawn had told Buffy that she was not going to be around to protect her all the time and well… to me… I thought that one scene proved to me how mature Dawn had become over the course of the sixth season. Often times… I think Dawn is actually more mature than her older sister. Heh-heh… maybe when the monks made her out of Buffy they left the fighting skills in Buffy and put a lot of Buffy's intelligence in Dawn. Yeah… that makes sense. Heh-heh. Anyways, take care… can't wait for a new chapter of The New Mutants.

Notmanos - For those who don't know… my friend Notmanos has one of the longest running X-Men/BTVS/Angel crossover series currently running on Check out his webpage everyone. He's got like 30 plus stories dealing with the X-Men and characters of the Buffyverse. Right now… dude… your series is definitely the best man. And hearing that you liked my story just puts me on cloud number nine man. I'm really glad. I hope you keep reading this and sending me your comments. Imitation of Life Rocks.

Red Witch – Wow… first words of encouragement from Notmanos and then the great Red Witch herself. I think I just died and went to heaven. Heh-heh. I'm really glad that you think so highly of this story. You know… I actually used to go on Red Witch fan-fiction marathons. Yeah… like going on a South Park marathon. Love your stories. Can't wait for another update of Evolution XMJ. As for this story of mine… I hope you'll be around to follow it as it progresses. Thanks again for reading and reviewing. Hope you enjoy this new chapter.

JA Baker – thanks for the review. Sorry that you think combining my dialogues with descriptions can get a little confusing. But that's the way I write it, I hope it doesn't bother you that much. Take care and update Dear Old Dad soon. Later.

Sean Malloy-1 – thanks for the review. As for Dawn and Scott being relatives… keep reading to find out.

RogueFanKC – Woohoo… I'm really glad that you liked my style of writing. As for Gambit flirting with Dawn… well… that will depend on if he survives this chapter… heh-heh. And as for Logan/Giles confrontation… keep reading… I have an encounter like that planned in the next chapter. Muhahahahaha. And I can't wait to read another chapter of For Truth, Justice, and another cup of BA's coffee… umm… do you think we can find the recipe for that somewhere? For some reason… even though I hate drinking coffee… I just feel like I have to try BA's coffee. Yes… I need help… apparently.

China Croix Midnight Wanderer – hey… thank you very much for the kind words. I'm glad that you think my writing skills are great. Hopefully you'll be around to follow this story as it progresses.

Carmilla – hey… I'm glad that you loved that Giles/Jubes confrontation. You know… I was actually thinking of taking a different route to how I was going to get the two to meet… but then I thought heck… what's the fun in getting them to be acting all civil towards each other. Heh-heh. Professor X and Ororo are there to cover the part of acting civil with Giles… and don't forget… Professor X's golden boy Scott Summers, I think he can be civil for all of them combined. Heh-heh. Anyways… take care and keep reading.

Allen Pitt – thanks Allen for reviewing. As for all your questions… all I have to say is keep reading to find the answers to the questions you've asked. I can go ahead and answer your questions here… but then I would be spoiling it for all the other readers… heh-heh. And I really want everyone to go through each and every chapter discovering relationships, character profiles as at present time, and so forth. I'll just tell you one thing… I'm going to be addressing all those points you made… some in the near future… some pretty far into the future. But they will be addressed. So keep reading to find out. Take care. Later.

The Uncanny R-Man – hey man… you know… this chapter would have been up a lot sooner if someone didn't keep distracting me with new chapters and stories from his corner. Heh-heh. But heck… was it a few good distractions or what? Heh-heh. Anyways… Dawn gets to meet a few members of the New Mutants in this chapter. Hope it lives up to your expectation. Take care. Can't wait for an update of… well… one of your stories. Later dude.

Darklight – no Cairns in this fic… maybe in the sequel. Heh-heh. Yes… I already have that planned out. Followed by another one. I'm taking a page out of Notmanos's stories. Going to create my own little X-Men Evolution/BTVS Universe right here on and will soon have everyone wanting more and more stories…. Muhahahahahahaha. Heh-heh. Take care man… and thanks for reviewing.

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**DISCLAIMER** – The characters of Angel and Buffy the Vampire Slayer belong to Joss Whedon, the WB, UPN, Mutant Enemy, Twentieth Century Fox and others whom I don't know about. The characters of X-Men Evolution are owned by Marvel. I am not in any way affiliated with any of the groups or organizations that hold rights over the characters of Angel or Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or X-Men Evolution and neither have I been authorized to write the following story. This is a non-profit fan based effort and no copyright infringement is intended. So, umm… please don't sue.

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**Chapter 4: Explanations**

Giles almost immediately spun around and defended himself, "I assure you I AM NOT a queue-jumper." He paused for a second before composing himself and saying, "it happened only once… today in fact… and I had already explained to her at the time that I was plainly too exhausted to notice where the queue had started." He turned to glare at the young Chinese American girl who just glared right back at him, which Dawn thought would actually have been intimidating if it wasn't for the chewing gum bubble that was growing bigger by the second before it finally popped back into her mouth.

Jubilee just pointed a finger accusingly at the older Englishman before stating for probably the whole world to hear. "See, he just called me short… he's not saying it but he's thinking about it… I mean, come on… I was standing right there and he didn't even see me," she looked towards Ororo Monroe who was still seated in one corner and asked pleadingly, with puppy dog eyes which Giles thought would give Buffy a run for her money, "Miss Ro, tell him its rude to think people are short."

Ororo Monroe just smiled in amusement at the entire scene playing out in front of her and she could tell that the Professor was right there with her, as she looked towards Giles and said in a mock reprimanding tone, "Mr Giles, she is correct you realise."

All the while Dawn was watching this scene play out in front of her while trying very hard to wipe the wide grin that was threatening to split her face in two. She all of a sudden had the urge to have Andrew's digital camera with her… as this meeting between Watcher and potential slayer was undeniably one for the records.

Before Giles could say anything however, the young potential interrupted him by popping one more bubble with her gum and saying, "plus, I'm still a growing girl," she put her hands on her hips again to emphasise her next point. "I might even become taller than ya one day," she finished prior to turning her head to look at the beautiful Ororo Monroe and enquired in that pleading manner of hers, "Right Miss Ro?"

"It is quite probable," Ororo assured the younger girl that just made a self-satisfied smile appear on Jubilee's face as she finally turned to look at Dawn and waved her hand in greeting. Dawn smiled and waved a hand in greeting back at the younger girl and added a "hi".

"Plus, one of my best friends, Remy told me that I'm p'tite, not short… so nnnyyyhhhhhh!" Jubilee added as she stuck out her tongue at the old watcher intended to emphasise her point more.

Rupert Giles tried to defend himself once again by saying that he never once implied any such thing but the young Asian girl just ignored him as she once again turned her attention to Dawn. "Yer not with the queue-jumper here are ya?" Jubilee asked Dawn to which Dawn just smiled and nodded. Jubilee in return just looked at Dawn sympathetically before adding, "Sorry to hear that."

"He's really not that bad," Dawn said which drew out a look from Giles that solely stated 'NOT. THAT. BAD?' as the younger Summers went on to further reassure the young Chinese American… as well as to stop Giles from glaring down at her by saying, "he's pretty cool once you get to know him fully."

Jubilee just cocked an eyebrow at the older Englishman who had a smug smile plastered across his face and said, "Him and cool huh… guess its one of those things ya gotta see to believe," making the older Englishman frown a little and mutter something like, "I used to be cool… at one time… God I miss being Ripper sometimes." Of course, since he was saying all this under his breath, no one really heard what he said as the Professor suggested that he take his seat again.

Dawn on the other hand got up from her seat and walked up to the younger girl and said, "I'm Dawn."

"Jubilation Lee," said Jubilee as she stuck out her hand for a handshake before adding, "but ya can call me Jubilee."

As the two girls shook each other's hand, Dawn noticed for the first time that Jubilee had the most uniquely blue eyes she had ever seen on an Asian girl. She hadn't even realised that she had been staring at the girl's eyes when Jubilee finally said, "Umm… Dawn… you're kinda staring at me."

Dawn blinked and let go of the younger potential's hand and just blurted out, "Sorry… didn't mean to… but you've got really beautiful eyes."

"Oh," Jubilee blushed a little at the compliment but when she noticed that Dawn was smiling at the younger girl and still looking at her, she revealed, "I'm not gay… just so you know."

Dawn blinked a few times as what the younger girl said registered in her mind and in response did the only thing she could consider at that instant and that was to respond with a "WHAT?"

"I mean, not that there's anything wrong with that but I really don't swing that way ya know," Jubilee added after Dawn's outburst.

"W-what makes you think I'm gay?" Dawn asked the young potential, then a thoughtful look came over Dawn's face and she added… well, actually… more like… ranted, "ok… sure… so I've lived with like two lesbian witches for the last couple of years and my first real kiss was with a vampire… and although he was dead and everything but still he WAS a boy… not to mention the first time I fell in love was because of some stupid spell but just because RJ didn't turn out to be the man of my dreams after the spell was over doesn't mean I'm giving up on the entire male species you know… I mean, who hasn't had a few bad starts in romance."

After she was finished, she looked up to see that Jubilee with her eyes wide was in fact looking speechless. Even Ororo and the Professor were looking at not Dawn, but rather waiting for Jubilee to say something… anything really. It was almost as though they had not heard one word about witches and vampires that had come out of Dawn's lips but were growing alarmed because it had been nearly fifteen seconds… and Jubilee had not uttered one single word. Their anxiety however vanished as Jubilee, still wide-eyed, just asked Dawn, "What in the world are ya talking about?"

Dawn bit her lips as she realised what she had just said and turned to see Giles basically looking at her dumbfounded. Dawn just let out a soft chuckle and said, "heh-heh… just talking crazy here… don't... umm… think anything about it… k?"

When Giles gestured for her to take her seat, Dawn looked down at the floor and slumped down onto the chair not meeting Giles's eyes.

The Professor, who had all this time simply sat back and watched the interaction between his charge and the young Summers, decided to take hold of the situation and asked for Jubilee to grab another seat from the corner and sit herself down in front of the desk. As she did so, Jubilee was finally introduced to Rupert Giles, although she said she would rather prefer calling him 'queue-jumper' as she thought it suited him perfectly. The Professor gave the girl a look and she quieted down and then he went on to tell the young Asian girl that Giles and Dawn had both come all the way from Los Angeles to speak with her. Jubilee, finally looking a little serious asked if their visits had anything to do with the death of her parents.

"No," Giles said, "it does not actually." He paused for a second before adding, "I'm very sorry to hear about your loss by the way."

Jubilee just shrugged and said, "I got over it."

It was these last few words that made Giles look at Jubilee in a whole new light. He didn't need to be a mind reader to know that she in fact… hadn't gotten over it. She was still angry and grieving over the death of her parents. As a result, seeing as she lost the two most important people in her life, she had distanced herself from everyone with her tough-girl outlook and obnoxious actions… so that most people will at most times want nothing to do with her. She had mentioned something about a best friend… if Giles knew the girl; he would have guessed that she probably has just a few close confidants. But he had a feeling that she'd rather distance herself from all of them in an instant than to go through the pain of that kind of loss again. A part of him felt sorry for the young girl, but he was not there to console her or talk about how she was really handling the death of her parents… rather, he was there in Bayville to do a job, and a job he was going to do. There will be time for other things later on.

Giles therefore started by directing a query to the Professor, "Professor, this may perhaps sound a little bizarre coming from me but do you… umm… believe in the existence of demons?"

Both the Professor and Ororo shared a look at this question while Jubilee just let out a snort.

The Professor seemed a little cautious at first, sparing a rather hesitant glance at Jubilee to find her staring back at him with a curious look. He however, nodded after a brief pause and added, "Ororo and I have both had some encounters with the type of beings you are describing… we have another member of our staff who has had to deal with demons of various kinds over the course of his life… and a few of my older students are aware of them as well… other than that, most of the students are not aware of such things… and… we would very much like to keep it that way."

Dawn was a little surprised at this admission on the Professor's part and noticed that Giles on the other hand had more or less expected this reply from the Professor. Jubilee on the other hand burst out with a "No freaking way" after the Professor had made his answer. She however, quickly clamped a hand over her mouth and looked a little apologetically at the group for her use of language. The Professor shot Jubilee a reprimanding look before turning his attention back to Giles and asked, "Tell me Mr Giles… does this have anything to do with why you are here to see Jubilee?"

Giles nodded and smiled at the Professor for responding truthfully before considering his next words and finally asking, "Tell me Professor… have you ever heard of an organisation known as the Watcher's Council?"

The Professor shook his head and then replied that he hadn't. Giles then went on to tell them a little about the sort of organisation The Watcher's Council was and how he himself was at one time a member of that same organisation. He then went on to talk about the legend of The Slayer and to Giles's surprise; the Professor was actually well versed in the myth. When Giles asked the Professor how it was that he came across the mention of The Slayer, the Professor simply replied that in his spare time he reads a lot. Giles could tell that there was probably something that had led the Professor to dig through books on Mysticism, as those were the only kinds of books that could ever have any mention of The Slayer but then decided that he had no right to ask the Professor what he was looking for in mystic books and that everyone has a right to their own secrets. Giles then went on to talk a little bit about Buffy, whom he introduced as Dawn's elder sister and how she was The Chosen One, The Slayer at the moment. He then explained to them how she had been protecting the world, as her duty requires of her from various threats from demons and the occasional hell-gods over the years, on occasion saving the world from apocalypses by a hair's breath.

The only one in the room who still seemed a little clueless was none other than Jubilee who had actually stopped popping her gum and had simply replaced the popping sound with a lot of "huh?", "no way!" and "hah… yeah right!" here and there. Dawn had just put a hand on the girl's knee to tell her to just sit back and listen… and that everything will be explained in due time. Even though Jubilee tried to look indifferent with a "Yeah, whatever," to the conversation going on, Dawn could tell that they had the young girl's complete concentration. And that in itself was probably something rare to begin with.

The Professor finally asked what this all had to do with Jubilation Lee and Giles sighed heavily before finally telling the Professor everything about the latest crisis him and his charges were trying to avert back in Sunnydale. Even though a part of him didn't want the Professor to know the full details of what was going on in Sunnydale… something in the old watcher told him that the man behind the desk could and should be trusted with the knowledge. Thus, he told the Professor everything about what was going on in Sunnydale and emphasised each and every detail to make sure the Professor understood just how serious the circumstances were. Giles ultimately told the Professor about what had been happening to the potential slayers all around the world. Both Ororo and the Professor were horrified as Giles went on to give details how a great evil entity was trying to wipe out the slayer line by cold-bloodedly slaughtering off all potential slayers… long before they had a chance to take up the mantle of The Slayer. He then told them that the very last of these few remaining potentials had made their way to Sunnydale in hope that the present Slayer… Dawn's older sister… Buffy Summers will be able to defend them. But even though he didn't say anything else, both the other adults could surmise that things were most likely not turning out the way Giles and his charges had hoped they would.

Once Giles had finished saying his tale, even though, with a lump in her throat Jubilee could already deduce where the discussion was heading, but she still asked as Giles finally turned to address her, "so… umm, what's this all got to do with me… not that I believe you just so ya know."

Giles spared a look at the Professor and could tell from looking at the man's face that even he did not like where this conversation was heading. "You see Jubilee," Giles started, "whether you wish to believe it or not… you will still need to hear me out. To each and every generation; there are hundreds, if not thousands of girls, all born with the potential to become the next slayer." He paused for a second as he looked directly into the girl's blue eyes and stated, "And you my dear Jubilation Lee… are one of these potentials."

"No way," Jubilee said shaking her head.

"Umm… Yes way," Giles replied elicited a cocked eyebrow look from Dawn.

"Nuh-uh," the young Chinese American said shaking her head stubbornly.

"Mm-hmm," Giles nodded his head just as stubbornly to get his point across.

Jubilee then unexpectedly got up from the chair and shook her head while crossing her hands in front of her chest before saying, "Well… I don't want to be a potential or a slayer, I'm an X-Man," this statement however elicited a cough from both the Professor and Ororo and Jubilee rolled her eyes once before she shot a mock glare at the duo before she corrected herself by saying, "well, training to be one. I don't wanna be anything else."

Giles looked sympathetically at the youngster before saying, "I'm afraid… you may not have a choice in the matter."

Jubilee finally looked at the Professor and Ororo with a desperate look in her eyes and Professor, seeing the caged look in the eyes of one of his charges finally stepped in and said, "Jubilee, why don't you take Dawn and introduce her to a few of the other students while I have a word with Mr Giles here." Jubilee seemed more than happy to get out of the room. Dawn looked at Giles and Giles nodded his head to let her know she had his consent to go with the young potential. As the two adolescents left the room, Professor Xavier turned to Giles to see the man shaking his head. Both he and Ororo deduced that Jubilation's recruitment was not going as well as the Englishman had originally planned.

"Mr Giles," the Professor started, "I understand you may have had the best of intentions when you came down to Bayville to recruit Jubilee…"

He was however cut off as Giles shook his head and stated, "oh no Professor… you misunderstand me," when it looked as though Professor Xavier was waiting for the Englishman seated opposite to him to continue, Giles added, "I have absolutely no intension of taking Jubilee back to Sunnydale with me."

Both the Professor and Ororo shared a somewhat perplexed look at this announcement before turning their attention to Giles as the Professor asked, "Then why exactly did you come down to Bayville Mr Giles?"

Giles looked a little sheepish before finally stating that when he had started out of Sunnydale, all he had been told was that a very powerful seer in England found out about a potential slayer living in Bayville with the principal of a boarding school or something of the sort… at that time however, he had no idea that the Principal of the school just happened to be the founder of the X-Men.

"There was only one reason that I came down here to the institute to meet Jubilation Lee personally," Giles admitted. "And that reason was Dawn," he finished.

When the professor gave him another quizzical look, Giles explained that once he had discovered that Jubilee was staying with the X-Men, he knew that she would be safe here and had thought of not contacting the girl at all. But it was Dawn who had convinced him that they should contact the girl and let her know what was going on, at least give her a head's up for what was going on… in case something tries to attack the girl. He let his words and explanations sink in and simply waited to be addressed again.

"Mr Giles," the Professor said with outmost sincerity, "I thank you for letting us know of the situation, Jubilee will indeed be very well protected here… and I'm not just talking about the security system we have installed on the grounds here," The Professor smiled at the older Englishman and then said… no… actually stated, "I'm talking about the children. Take it from me Mr Giles, when you meet them, some of them may seem as though they don't like each other or that they don't even get along with everyone, some of them may even act indifferent to what is going on around them, but when one of us is threatened, they band together like they have been families from the day they were born". The Professor then leaned forward and looked directly at Giles before adding with emphasis, "And take it from me Mr Giles… it will take more than an army of demons to hold them off at that time." Giles took one look at the Professor's clear blue eyes and he knew he could not doubt the Professor's claim.

Giles didn't know much about the mutants who were living at Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters; and he knew even very little about mutants to begin with. In the past, the Watcher's Council had thought that mutants were some type of human-demon hybrids. But as science progressed and the reason behind mutation was discovered, the Watcher's Council abandoned any reservations they may have had against mutants. Their only goal was to battle demonic beings and that is exactly what they concentrated their energies on.

"And let's not forget," the Professor added with a knowing smile, "Jubilee isn't exactly the most defenceless girl on the planet."

Giles for the first time narrowed his eyes as he realised that he had no idea as to what kind of powers Jubilee herself already had. He had considered the fact that she could have been a mutant but he had never once expressed his feelings on the matter.

"Mr Giles," the Professor started again, "I am going to be completely honest with you. Although we have had to deal with beings of supernatural origins before, most of the students who live here have never been exposed to these kinds of creatures… I would very much like to keep it that way." Giles just nodded his head as the Professor went on. "But for Jubilee's safety, I would need to bring the attention of my X-Men to this matter. I would in fact call them in here right now, but… things have been really quiet for us the past couple of weeks and therefore I had asked most of them to take some time to themselves. Therefore most of them are away visiting either their families or simply out at the moment. Not to mention calling them all in at this time would garner the attention of too many of my extremely curious student body and I would most certainly like to avoid that." He finished with a hint of amusement.

Giles let out a light chuckle and added, "You'd be surprised as to how many times Buffy and I have caught Dawn trying to eavesdrop on one of our conversations about demons and such that."

"Yes," the Professor responded with a chuckle as he turned towards Ororo to see the same hint of amusement in her eyes. "I can imagine that." His tone took on a more serious tone however as he said, "Anyways, as I was saying, I would like for you Mr Giles…"

He was cut off as Giles just raised a hand and said, "Please Professor, enough with the pleasantries, please just call me either Rupert or Giles from now on."

"Very well Rupert… and you can call me Charles," the Professor replied as Ororo Monroe added from the side, "Ororo will do fine."

Now that they were all comfortable with each other, Giles gestured for the Professor to carry on with what he had been trying to say and the Professor was more than happy to oblige. "Rupert… I need to know precisely what kind of threats we have to be on the lookout for Jubilation's safety. Even though I seek to refrain from violent means to end any conflict… experience on the other hand has taught me that every now and then, violence is the only way to end a confrontation with a being of mystical origin. Well… there's always a few that we can throw the occasional spells at but those are particularly rare to come by." He paused for a second before stating, "Rupert… I would like to know everything there is to know about anything that may come after Jubilee and we can prevent them from succeeding in their efforts."

Giles was already in Watcher mode by the time the Professor made his request. It took him less than a few seconds to think about everything that could come after Jubilee and another few seconds to start providing information. "Well," Giles started, "for starters… there's the Bringers..."

* * *

Dawn and Jubilee walked out of the office and into the hall and Jubilee gestured for Dawn to follow her towards the left of the mansion down a long hall. Dawn could tell that the younger girl was still processing everything that had been said in the Professor's office and for that reason decided to start a conversation with her in hopes of taking the girl's mind off matters pertaining to the Hell-Mouth. 

"So," Dawn started out as casually as she could, "how long have you lived at this," Dawn gestured to everything around her and added, "very large mansion?"

Jubilee just shrugged and said, "Was living here for about a semester before my mom and dad decided to pull me out. Didn't think it was safe after that whole sentinel fiasco."

"Yeah, I remember," Dawn nodded her head. "We were in Sunnydale watching a movie on cable when it got interrupted with what was going on in New York… gotta say, was a real shocker." She flashed a smile at Jubilee and stated in a laughing yet matter of fact tone, "Take it from me… that… is something considering what we have to see and face every other day."

Jubilee simply nodded in acknowledgement. Dawn saw that the girl seemed to be in deep thought about something before she finally turned to the younger Summers and asked, "So… umm… what the queue-jumper was talking about back there was all true?"

Dawn saw that Jubilee was trying to keep a neutral expression on her face but she could tell that this was still a lot for her to take in, especially considering the short amount of time she has had to process everything. Dawn just smiled a little sadly back at the younger girl, and nodded her head in affirmation.

"Damn!" Jubilee cursed under her breath. "As if being a mutant didn't already complicate my life."

Dawn just remained silent as she kept up pace with the younger girl.

As they turned a corner, Jubilee just blurted out, "I don't want to be this slayer thingy."

Dawn nodded her head in understanding before stating without a second's delay, "I don't want you to be The Slayer too."

Jubilee stopped and looked at Dawn in surprise as Dawn explained, "in order for you to be a slayer, my sister would need to die," Dawn looked down at the floor and just shook her head a little before saying, "and I… I just don't want her to…"

She didn't finish as Jubilee put an arm on her hand and just smiled reassuringly at the older girl before stating in a knowing tone, "Don't worry chica; I'm sure yer's sister's going to be living for a long time."

"Yeah," Dawn sighed. "I hope so too."

"Like I said," Jubilee went on. "From the way the old guy was talking about yer sister… I'd say she's probably got a better chance of surviving longer than anyone else."

"I hope so," Dawn added. She paused for a second before adding, "So you believe him now?"

"Nope," Jubilee responded with a smirk and then added, "but I sure made you feel better right?"

Dawn smiled at the young potential and said, "Yeah… you sure did." She paused once again as they started down the hall and said, "You know… you could just call him Giles."

"Nope… I couldn't," Jubilee stated. "Calling him Giles won't annoy him as much."

Dawn let out a chuckle as she just shook her head and followed the girl through the long hall that was in the Xavier's Institute.

As they started walking again, Jubilee finally asked, "So… what kinda powers does yer sister have… ya know… being a slayer and all?"

Dawn smiled before answering, "Well, she's got like enhanced strength, speed, stamina, healing, some kind of slayer sense which warns her of supernatural threats and stuff."

Jubilee just scrounged up her nose before looking back at Dawn and asking, "That's it?"

Dawn couldn't help herself as she cocked an eyebrow at the young Asian girl beside her and responded, "Oh come on now, how many people do you know who have all those powers?"

Jubilee just cocked an eyebrow right back at the Sunnydale resident in response before asking, "Ya do realise yer at a school for mutants right?"

Dawn blinked a few times before thinking over about what Jubilee had just said and had to admit that with so many mutants being discovered each and every day, there was a good chance that many of them will have the same powers as Buffy.

"So," Dawn started again, "What kind of powers do you have?"

Jubilee in reply stopped and held up a hand in front of her and Dawn watched in amazement as colourful sparks started to erupt from Jubilee's hands. "I can create what ya might call fireworks."

Dawn laughed as she saw the display and voiced, "So, you are like a walking talking bubblegum popping 4th of July huh?"

Jubilee snorted and just as the fireworks had erupted from her hands, they disappeared. "If only I had a dime for every time someone said that."

As they kept walking down the hallway, Dawn finally asked the younger Asian girl, "So, where's the rest of the team?" She paused for a second before adding, "I still can't believe I'm actually inside the mansion where the X-Men live… my sister and her friends are so totally going to freak when they hears about this"

"Yeah, joy," Dawn heard Jubilee grumbling. She didn't know why the girl was acting distressed. Maybe Giles should not have jumped into Watcher mode so quickly. She felt a little sorry for the young girl… and she guessed that talking about girls given superpowers just for the sole-purpose of saving the world from demons could be a little overwhelming. After all, being a mutant just meant one had powers, it did not however automatically signify that he or she will have to go around saving the world.

The mutant band of heroes known as the X-Men was one of the only groups in the world who had taken the responsibility of using their powers for the betterment of mankind. Dawn thought that now that Giles had told Jubilee what she had the potential of one day becoming… she was all of a sudden finding out that that as one of the X-Men, she may have had the option of quitting… of even leading a normal life… well, as normal a life as she could live with her god-given powers. But Dawn knew better… as a slayer, that option will be pretty much non-existent. Buffy had tried... once… she had run away from everything she had ever known after she had killed Angel and sent him to hell many years ago… but no matter where she went or how far she ran, trouble seemed to just be a step behind.

She looked at the young girl walking beside her, with her bright dress and a bold attitude to match, and realised that while Dawn may be excited to talk about the X-Men… Jubilee realising that what once was an option was not so any more was feeling… maybe… a little jealous. That if come one day they decided to disband the X-Men… they could do that… without having to answer to anyone. God forbid if something happened to Buffy… Jubilee may be called to take up the mantle of the next slayer. And like Giles said, she may not have a choice in the matter.

She was brought out of her reverie as Jubilee turned to answer Dawn's previous question, "the ones who are here are probably in the recreation room, but most of the people are either out visiting family for the weekend or just downtown having fun on dates and…"

She was cut off as both of them looked up to see the same man from the food court who had been with Jubilee come rushing past them while screaming, "Oh come now Chére, don' be mad… Gambit really t'ought dat would look good on y'."

As soon as he passed Dawn and Jubilee, Dawn frowned for a second when she thought she saw something different about the man's eyes. The both of them also had the common sense to move out of the way and stand leaning against the wall of the hallway they were in as the man dashed past them. They then turned in the direction the man had ran from to see a young Goth girl, probably just a few years or so older than Dawn with a very distinct hairstyle, which Dawn noticed was reddish brown with just one or two streaks of white hair at the front, in pursuit of the man with a fist held up high in the air and eyes screaming murder. "How could yah even think ah was gonna put on something lahke that foh yah… yah swamp rat… now come back heah and take yar beatings lahke a man."

"MERDE!" the man screamed before turning and disappearing around a corner with the obviously hot-headed Goth following close behind.

"While some are trying to survive their dates," Jubilee finished as Dawn gave her a curious look… clearly wanting to know what was going on and Jubilee was more than happy to obliged wholeheartedly.

"The guy in the trench coat was Gambit," a small smile spread over Jubilee's face as she mentioned the Cajun's name, "he's actually one of the people who brought me back from Los Angeles after my…" Dawn watched as a slightly pained expression passed over the young girl's face as she trailed off for a second or two but that quickly passed as she just skipped whatever she was going to say and continued, "anyways... as I was saying… he's got like the biggest crush on our resident southern belle," Dawn noticed Jubilee dragging the last two words out in amusement. "That's Rogue… the Goth that was looking to kill him."

"I'm guessing the girl doesn't return his feelings?" Dawn asked as they started walking again all the while thinking what kind of parents would name their daughter Rogue… and what the heck kind of name was Gambit… what was he… born in the middle of a casino in Vegas. Come to think of it, even Jubilation Lee… Jubilee was kind of a weird name. Ororo Monroe was a slightly exotic name. And Professor Charles Xavier just sounded powerful.

"Actually," Jubilee responded bringing Dawn out of her musings, "we aren't really clear on that. As far as we can tell… it's like this." She paused for a second as if wondering how best to put it to her new companion and then finally just deciding that simplicity was the way to go. "Gambit loves Rogue… Rogue loves Gambit but won't admit it… so Gambit keeps showering Rogue with all kinds of gifts thinking she'd get tired off it all and finally admit to her true feelings… her true feelings according to half the people at the mansion and the Cajun himself. But of course, so far, all Gambit's gotten are a lotta bruises for his troubles… and ya know what the worst part is… she's got super strength and he doesn't." Dawn let out a chuckle at this and briefly thought if Riley had to go through the same troubles with Buffy as this Gambit person seems to be going through.

"Trust me," Jubilee added with a laugh of her own, "watching those two is way better than cable… hell... We even got a betting pool where most residents bet on what Gambit will do to impress Rogue next time around and how much violence Rogue's gonna be inflicting on him… gotta give him credit though… he's pretty…"

She was cut off as they heard the same Cajun accent shouting from somewhere within the mansion, "No chére… not de coat… anyt'ing but de coat…" followed by a loud crash which made the two girls visibly wince as a few more Cajun curses soon followed and the voices faded away into the distance. Dawn finally realised how those rough patches she and Giles had witnessed upon entering the place had been caused.

"Insistent," Jubilee finally finished. "Come on chica," she urged Dawn along, "there are probably some people in the rec-room; I'll introduce ya to them."

Dawn smiled at the prospect of meeting more members of the X-Men and followed the girl almost giddily. If she was to just sit down and think, she would have realised that in all her excitement, she had completely forgotten about the exhaustion that should have had her begging for a nice relaxing bed to crawl into. But the prospect of meeting people who were different to most people, just like most members of her now extended family in Sunnydale were, even though they were on whole different levels, was more than enough to make certain that fatigue was the very last thing in her mind.

Dawn followed Jubilee to as they passed a darkened room which upon inspection with the help of the little light from the hallway that was illuminating the room in a faint glow was revealed to be the kitchen. As soon as they passed the room however, she picked up on the sounds of some people talking excitedly over what sounded like video games on a big screen.

As she entered the room following the young potential, she noticed that altogether there were seven kids present, most of them about the same age as Jubilee and a few either slightly older or a little younger than her. There were two boys, one with obvious South American background as his features confirmed and another boy with… blond hair and orange highlights at the front. For some reason the second boy's hairdo reminded her of one of those characters from the Japanese cartoon shows that Xander enjoyed watching so much. Of course not being an expert on the topic, she had no idea which character the boy reminded her off. The two boys were playing a combat game on videogame console while yelling at each other about how one was better than the other.

Between the two boys sat another boy who seemed a lot younger than the duo seated on either side of him. This individual had dark brown hair and was watching the two older boys duel it out on the television while munching on a bag of chips while a He-Man action figure lay on his stomach. Dawn turned to another corner of the room where a pretty and perky looking blond girl was having an animated conversation with a stunningly beautiful girl with dark brown hair. There were two more boys shooting pool at one corner… but the one thing that caught her eyes more than anything was a large reddish-brown wolf sleeping at one corner of the couch… near to where the two boys were duelling it out on the videogame console.

"Whoa!" Dawn exclaimed as she stopped on her tracks, "is… that a wolf?"

This small outburst was all it took however to gain the notice of everyone in the room in the direction of the entrance to the room and the new girl standing beside one of their friends. But they weren't the only ones who noticed the girl; it also garnered the attention of the wolf as it got up from its resting place and started to advance on the new comer with a low growl. Dawn didn't want to look like a coward as she unconsciously stepped behind the younger Asian girl, but it was not everyday that she went to a place where they had a pet wolf looking as though it was going to swallow her whole… or at the very least exert some severe bodily harm to her.

Jubilee however, unworried by the ferociousness of the wolf, simply raised both her hands in front of her, palms facing out trying to stall the wolf from advancing while saying, "whoa there Rahne… Come on girl… snap out of it. This one's a friend here… so… umm… don't bite her."

Dawn looked into the eyes of the wolf and saw something that took her completely by surprise. Understanding…but most of all… a trace of humanity. As though the wolf understood what Jubilee had just said. And as though that wasn't already enough… the most amazing thing happened next that made her literally drop her jaws onto the floor.

The wolf stood up on its hind legs, and its entire body began to transform before her very eyes. Firstly it changed into a half-human half-wolf form, which reminded Dawn a little about werewolves, and then the reddish-brown hair receded into the wolf's body to reveal a reddish-brown haired girl with bright green eyes looking a little back at Dawn a little sheepishly.

Dawn and the reddish-brown haired girl stared at each other for a few seconds before at long last the red-headed girl waved her hand a little timidly at the girl from Sunnydale and greeted her with a "hi".

Dawn could only wave back… as she was still recovering from the shock of seeing the transformation. She was however brought out of her musing as Jubilee snapped her fingers twice right in front of her eyes.

"Huh?" Dawn let out as she shook her head to get rid of the shock that had settled in once she had witnessed the transformation.

Jubilee let out a chuckle as she said, "man-o-man, for a moment there… I thought we'd lost ya." Jubilee then turned to all the others as she said, "Yo… everyone," she grinned like a cat that caught the canary as she announced, "we got ourselves a new friend."

Dawn was then introduced to everyone. Starting with Rahne.

"Sorry aboot scaring ye like that," Rahne said a little guiltily as Dawn noticed the Scottish accent. "Sometimes when I'm in muh wolf-state, muh natural wolfish instincts take over and well… as ye can probably guess… " she waved her hand about in gesture of how she was about to attack Dawn less than a minute ago and just left it there.

"Nah… don't worry about it," Dawn just shrugged it off as nothing. "You just took me by surprise… that's all."

The younger girl smiled. Dawn was about to bring up the fact that her sister's best friend in reality used to date a werewolf, but caught herself before she did so. The way Jubilee had reacted to the news that demons and vampires and all other things that go bump in the night were real was more than enough proof that there were a few things that these super-powered individuals were just not yet ready to learn about.

"Come on Rahne, lets introduce her to the others," Jubilee suggested as she dragged Dawn pass the Scottish girl and in the direction of the rest who at that moment were merely watching the fresh face with curiosity. Dawn just nodded and followed the young Asian girl along with Rahne at her side.

* * *

Hearing someone calling out her name from the entrance to the rec-room, Dawn looked up to see her sisters mentor, Giles, standing there beckoning for her to come. "It's... umm… time we parted," Giles said as he smiled at the other mutant teens. 

Dawn frowned a little at that but a quick look at her wristwatch told her that roughly an hour had passed since she had started her conversation with the super-powered teenagers. Firstly there had been the introductions.

She had come to know the both the boys who had been playing the videogame console as Roberto, who just happened to be from Brazil and the boy with the orange highlights in his hair … the one who reminded her of an anime character was introduced as Ray… otherwise known as Bezerker. The younger boy in the middle had been Jamie…and the rationale behind calling him Multiple became obvious to her when he had accidentally bumped into two girls… twins at that, walking into the rec-room. She had watched in awe as before the two girls could give him a helping hand, other Jamies appeared out of nowhere and helped the slightly embarrassed boy to his feet. The twins were introduced to her as Nicole and Claudette St. Croix from Monaco. According to Jubilee, they had an older sister who was a very powerful mutant and that they had just recently moved into the mansion. The glazed look that most of the boys had in their eyes when they talked about this Monet person told Dawn that the girl was most probably a very beautiful girl. The twins had come into the rec-room to find Jamie and Rahne and ask them to join the two for a few games with a boy named Leech and another girl named Paige who was waiting in another part of the mansion. They had left but not before one of the two boys who had been playing pool told them in a thick southern accent, "ya'll be careful… don't go running around causing trouble for the Professor and Miss Ro… yah hear me?"

The twins, Jamie and Rahne had just placed their hands over their hearts to feint shock at the prospect of the boy thinking they were capable of causing trouble before grinning mischievously and then running off with Rahne turning into a wolf and chasing after them.

She would come to know the tall blond southern boy had been Samuel Guthrie… AKA Cannonball. In the one hour she had known him, he had nearly tripped four times…only to be caught by either Jubilee or any of the other teenagers who had shouted a loud "NO," before scrambling to catch him. Dawn heard him explain that his mutant power enabled him to propel himself much like a rocket… or rather… a cannonball at great speeds… thus the name Cannonball.

Bobby, a youngster from Boston who was about the same age as Dawn herself and one of Jubilee's closest friend at the school, not to mention the one who had been playing the game of pool with Sam when she had entered the rec-room, had added, "some of us think being a total klutz is part of Sam's mutation," which had earned him a glare from the southern boy… which of course Bobby had absolutely ignored while he had simply gone on to add with a smirk, "but we are still looking to prove it."

After Jubilee, Dawn had found Bobby to be the most fun in the group of people she had just been introduced to. Ray and Roberto were fun as well when they were not screaming their heads off at each other. They REALLY didn't like each other that much. Sam was just too shy. And Rahne… despite the fact that she was closely the same age as Jubilee, Dawn had found that the teenager had this very innocent way of looking at the world. There was this innocence about her that Dawn just couldn't help but envy a little. The same could be said about Jamie. And nothing had made Jamie look the youngest and most innocent in the group than the He-Man action figure clutched close to his heart.

There was also the blond beauty Tabitha… AKA Boom Boom. Now if she had thought that Bobby and Jubilee were fun, this older girl was definitely the one who set the standard for what word "Fun" stood for at the X-Mansion. She was also one of the only people in the group who didn't make her feel like a total stranger from the start. They spoke to each other like they had been the best of friends since… well… forever.

Tabitha's best friend Amara however, was a little less forthcoming. Dawn couldn't believe that Amara was in actuality a Princess in real life. What was even more interesting was the fact that the nation of Nova Roma that the young princess was from was had apparently stayed hidden from the rest of the world from the time when the Roman's had ruled the world. The first few times, she wasn't even certain how to address her. But as she found out, even though Amara was a little more high-strung than the rest of the group, she was actually a very pleasant girl once she became a little more acquainted with her. Plus… it could also be that Tabitha's infectious cheerfulness and all-around relaxed state of living had rubbed off on her a little.

True, she would've liked to have met a few more of the students or some of the members of the X-Men, but as Jubilee had previously pointed out, most of them were either out of town or on their way back into town. Well, now that she had gotten the chance to know all these unique people, all Dawn could hope for was that she survives the coming conflict so she may perhaps one day come and visit them.

"I trust my students were good company?" the Professor asked Dawn as she walked up to the trio of Professor Xavier, Ororo Monroe and Giles.

Dawn just beamed brilliantly before responding, "Are you kidding me… I can't wait to come back and visit them all…" she paused for a second as she all of a sudden started to feel slightly nervous as she asked tentatively, "umm… I can come back and visit right?"

The Professor shot the younger Summers a comforting smile as he responded with a, "Of course Dawn… you are more than welcome anytime you want."

As a gesture of kinship, Tabitha came up and put an arm around Dawn's shoulder and said, "Oh Yeah… you definitely gotta come back here sometimes… we barely finished telling you half the stuff that happens around here."

Dawn let out a quiet laughter as she remembered the students or New Mutants as they liked to identify themselves as had decided to part to her some of the more attention-grabbing stories that have happened around the mansion… in particular the pranks they had pulled more than frequently on one another. She only wished that she could have been completely honest about her life back in Sunnydale to them. She just convinced herself that there were some things that even mutant super-heroes in training didn't need to know. The one who was supposed to know about demons and monsters from already knew it… and that's all that mattered at the moment.

Giles, seeing Dawn in such high spirits couldn't help himself from feeling a little happiness himself. It was always good to see one of his surrogate daughters in such a state. God knows they deserved every bit of happiness they could come across.

Most of the New Mutants followed the younger Summers and her sister's mentor, whom they had only known as Dawn's guardian at the time back in the direction of the main entrance to the mansion. Ray and Roberto stayed back in the rec-room saying their goodbyes from there as they were still arguing over who was the superior game-master. Dawn told Jubilee on the way out that she would very much like to say goodbye to Rahne and Jamie before she left and Samuel and Bobby who were heading upstairs to their dormitories just told her that they will send both of them downstairs if they were not already asleep. Dawn just told them to wish them goodbye from her if they were indeed asleep.

Dawn noticed that Ororo, the beautiful African woman was nowhere to be seen and asked the Professor where she was and the Professor just smiled at her and said, "I asked her to get the car…" he held up a hand when he saw that Giles was about to add something like they could call for a cab and said, "please Rupert… it is the least I could do."

Dawn just hugged the young potential Jubilee and whispered that, "we'll call you as soon as this thing blows over… until then… stay safe… k?"

Jubilee hugged back the California born brunette a little reluctantly before whispering back, "don't worry chica, I've been taught self-defence by the best there is at what he does… I think I can hold my own if anything comes after me." Dawn caught a small hint of sarcasm in Jubilee's voice. It looked as though she still wasn't prepared to believe everything that has been told completely. She just prayed that by the time the young potential comes to grip with her situation, it wouldn't be too late.

"Hey," Tabitha butted in sounding a little annoyed that she was being left out of whatever secret Dawn and Jubilee were sharing, "what are ya both whispering about?"

Jubilee broke off the hug and just smirked at the blond girl before responding, "Californian code girlfriend…can't have us revealing everything now can ya?"

Tabitha just snorted and crossed her arms in front of her chest… clearly not believing a word the young Asian was saying. She nevertheless was able to put the incident at the back of her mind and go on to flash her brilliant smile at the departing Californian and go on to give her a quick hug and asking her to call her as soon as she got back to L.A.. Perhaps they could plan something to do over the next summer vacation. Dawn didn't even know if she was going to survive the battle against the First Evil but she was happy nonetheless to have some things to look forward too.

"Yo Dawn," she turned towards the entrance to see Bobby calling out to her as he walked out, "Sorry… but those two are already in bed."

Dawn felt a little disappointed. She had really wanted to say goodbye to Rahne and Jamie. "Don't worry about it," Dawn just waved it off as nothing. "Just let them know I said bye and I'll probably see them around."

"Will do," Bobby said as he shook her hand one last time and added a wink "see you around," before finally heading back into the mansion.

Dawn smiled back at the young man as he went inside. She then heard the sounds of a car engine and turned to see a largely customized SUV coming to rest at the front of the main steps. She finally turned to say goodbye to the few friends she had made in the short amount of time she had been at the X-Mansion before turning to the Professor and saying with a smile, "thank you for letting us speak to you."

The professor just nodded as Giles who has been standing around also added, "yes… thank you very much… I do pray that the next time we meet… I will have some better news."

The Professor looked a little solemn at the notion of why the two Californians were there at the X-Mansion was reminded to him again. As much as he would have liked to have helped out with the situation… this was something the X-Men were not used to dealing with and therefore he will wait… keep his X-Men on standby if he has to. If this entity that call's itself the First Evil by any chance breaches Sunnydale borders… he and his X-Men will be there to stop it one way or another. But for now… he will simply wait. Keep a close eye on Sunnydale… see how things there span out.

Giles may have been fighting this war his entire life… from the looks of it, but the X-Men had more muscle and power where they lacked in experience. The only reason the Professor had not asked for some members of his X-Men to go along with Giles is because the man had very stubbornly admitted that they will be able to handle things there. And that this was not the X-Men's fight. So the professor had conceded… for now.

"I pray just as much," responded the Professor as he finally came out of his musings. And then he abruptly turned to Dawn as he heard her words rang through his mind. "Umm… Professor… can you hear me?"

Professor Xavier smiled a proud smile at the younger Summers and replied back telepathically, "Yes… I can indeed… most impressive Dawn… it more than often takes most people at least a few days at best to try and even attempt to communicate telepathically."

Dawn just smiled back at the older man and said, "Well… I'm not most people… plus… having a witch who can speak into your mind really helped a lot as well." The Professor cocked an eyebrow at the statement but Dawn gave it a telepathic wave… dismissing it as something that could be addressed at a latter time. "I just wanted to let you know that I don't think Jubilee believed most of what she had heard…"

"And you think that she might foolishly let her guard down and…" the Professor interrupted Dawn's train of thoughts as he added his own hypothesis telepathically. He didn't finish his last sentence as he knew exactly what Dawn was worried about. "Don't worry Dawn," the Professor reassured the young girl, "we will take every precaution we can think of to make sure she is kept safe."

"Thank you," Dawn replied back telepathically. The others, completely oblivious to the telepathic conversation that had taken place between the person formerly known as The Key and the most powerful psychic on the planet… they were however… a little surprised to see the younger Summers walk up to the Professor and bend down to give him a hug which was returned earnestly.

"Take care child," the Professor told the younger Summers who come morning was walking straight back into the mouth of hell itself.

Dawn let go of the older man and stood up straight before finally saying, "you too Professor," with a smile.

She waved a final goodbye to the rest of the students who were still gathered there before following Giles and hopping on to the rear seat as Giles got into the passenger seat up front.

"Are you two set?" asked Ororo as they all buckled up.

"Yes," Giles nodded and the three were off.

Professor Charles Xavier looked at the SUV driving off into the distance and prayed that he will get to see the both of them again.

"Well," he turned back to his students who were still standing around following the taillights of the car as it disappeared into the distance. "Lets all go in shall we." He smiled at the students in that fatherly way that he always did and in return the students wished him goodnight and headed towards their respective dormitories. The telepath's thoughts were however predominantly on the young Asian girl as she walked up to the room she shared with another student… deep in thought about what had been said to her.

The Professor sighed… at least the girl was thinking about what had been said…that was… at the very least a start in the right direction to dealing with this situation that had presented itself to them. He is going to have to call most of the X-Men back to the mansion… hold a meeting first thing tomorrow and let them know exactly what had transpired. For now, Gambit, Rogue, Storm, himself and the few students that are here at the mansion will have to do.

* * *

Knock! Knock! 

He didn't know what time it was but what he did know was that he was positively not in the mood to answer anyone at the door at this ungodly hour... or so he was hoping. The last thing he remembered was being dropped off at the motel he and Dawn had been staying at by Ororo Monroe after which the both of them had entered their room and promptly fallen asleep within the next few minutes in each other's respective beds. After all the work they had accomplished the previous day… a long night's rest was what they had both needed.

Knock! Knock!

But of course, just because they were away from the Hell-Mouth did not mean that he and his charge will be able to get that much deserved break. Of course someone had to come knocking at their door this early in the morning… he picked up his watch from the bedside table and frowned when he saw that it was already around eight o'clock in the morning. This meant he had been sleeping for nearly ten hours now. Well… looks as though he really didn't have anything to complain about seeing as he had actually gotten more sleep than he had in a long time.

Knock! Knock!

Giles glanced at the sleeping form of Dawn in the other bed and wondered how she was sleeping through that loud knocking. Oh well… the Summers women were always full of surprises. He picked up his glasses from the bedside table and put them on and shouted a "Coming," to whoever it was on the other side of the door before finally getting up from the bed and walking over to the door.

On the way however, he picked up a stake from his overcoat which he had flung on top of the small couch that had been provided to their room. Even though it was a bright sunny morning, the one thing he has learned over his ears as a watcher was that it always paid to take caution. He peered through the peephole in the door and saw that it was a tall man wearing a pair of very unique looking glasses with red lenses and a tall beautiful redhead at his side who had been knocking at his door. An image of the two, a slightly younger version of them came into his head as he tried to remember where he had seen them last.

Then it came to him… he had seen the two along with a few other people in a picture that had been present at Professor Xavier's desk when he had spoken to the man the previous night. He had remembered the man because Dawn had been very interested in meeting yet another Summers who apparently was in the "saving-the-world" business as she so eloquently put it. He swung the door open and stared a little confusedly at the pair who glanced at each other for a second before the young man finally came forward and offered his hand in a handshake.

"Mr Rupert Giles?" the man asked as Giles took his hand for a handshake and responded with an, "Umm… yes… how can I help you?"

"Good morning sir," the man greeted the older English man and offered, "My name is Scott Summers and this is Jean Grey," he gestured to the beautiful redhead beside him who smiled back at the older Englishman and offered her hand for a handshake as she added a, "nice to meet you sir," to which the English Watcher just smiled back a little forcefully and nodded before turning back to the young man beside her. "We are from the…"

"Xavier Institute… I know," Giles interrupted him as he was still unsure as to why Xavier will send his student over… unless… Giles swallowed a lump in his throat and decided that he should get the facts straight first before jumping to any sort of conclusion. "Why are you here? Has anything happened back at the mansion? Jubilee… is she…"

"Sir," Jean Grey spoke up. "She's fine." Giles breathe out a sigh of relief but his breath got caught in his throat again as she said, "it's just that…" the girl trailed off as if thinking of how to put her thoughts in words.

Scott Summers was more than happy to step in and get right to the fact. "Sir… the mansion was attacked last night by these creatures the Professor referred to as Bringers." Giles's mouth suddenly started to feel dry as the prospect of all those children and teenagers living at the Xavier's School getting hurt in one way or another came to his mind. "Professor Xavier sent us here hoping you'll be willing to come back to the mansion with us and… well… decide what we are to do with them."

"Dear lord," Giles exclaimed. "You mean to tell me you captured them and that you actually have them locked up at the mansion?"

"Umm," Scott started before just nodding his head once and saying, "pretty much sir."

Now Giles knew that they probably have a very sophisticated holding area for mutants and such… but he really didn't trust technology when it came to holding something as dangerous as the bringers… especially since they were mystical beings. The two X-Men watched as a very serious expression came over Giles's face and he said, "Give us ten minutes."

"Of course," said the young man as he and Jean Grey walked out towards the reception area to wait for them. Giles closed the door and sighed as he leaned his back against it. He had too many questions at the moment… for one thing… how did the Bringers get pass all the security that Xavier had installed for the security and safety of the children… but more importantly… how many of them were hurt trying to defend the life of one particular student. He knew he would have to wait till he heard the whole story… a story he was not willing to wait long for.

"So… I guess we are going back to Xavier's?" he heard Dawn say from her corner of the room and saw that she had already gotten up and was simply sitting there waiting for his reply.

Giles in return just nodded and immediately, both the Sunnydale party rushed to put something on to leave immediately for the mansion.

To Be Continued…

* * *

What exactly happened at the X-Mansion? Did anyone get hurt? How did the X-Men fare against the Bringers? And most of all… since Jubilee staying at the X-Mansion brought about the attack on the Bringers… what will her final decision be? And will the X-Men let her make that decision alone? Find out in another week or so. And I'm sure many of you have been waiting for this so I'm going to go ahead and say it… BIG FIGHT SCENE coming up in the next chapter. A few members of the X-Men VS Agents of the First Evil. It's going to be claws, kinetically charged cards, supers-strength and many more versus a horde of Bringers. Things are about to get very… very interesting. So stick around to read what will happen. 

And hey… can anyone tell me what kind of powers the St. Croix twins have, besides the really freaky one of turning into their older sister. I'll try and find out about it from internet sources but I'd rather hear from another writer or reader. Heh-heh. Take care everyone… see ya'll in a couple of weeks.

Before you go however… PLEASE REVIEW. Last chapter had 13 reviews (YAHOOOOO)… let's see if we can break that record this time around. REVIEW and if you like my fic a lot… get others to read it as well. in the mean time, REVIEW… REVIEW… REVIEW.


	5. And First Blood Goes To

**To My Reviewers: -**

Actiondude: - hey man… welcome to this fic. I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for reviewing. Hope you'll enjoy this chapter as well.

wordoftruthhunter26: - hi there… welcome to my fan-fiction. I hope you'll continue to like how this story will turn out.

Spanishwon2123: - hey there… one of my favourite Dark Angel writers. Hehe. I'm very glad that you like how this story is turning out. As for focusing on characters that don't get enough screen time, well… let's just say I have a soft spot for the underdogs. Take care and hope you'll enjoy this new chapter.

Proudly Pinoy: - hey man… welcome to the fic… I mean wow… three new people all interested in my writing. I would be on cloud no. 9 if it wasn't for the fact that I don't have any superpowers. As for imagining Giles talking to a cartoon character… dude… try looking for Buffy the Animated Series images on or something. I'm sure it will be a lot easier if you actually see the cartoon version of him. And yes… Jubilee will be changing her clothes… I mean jeez man… the girl lives at the home of a billionaire, I'm sure she can afford to get better clothes… but whether she wants to get better clothes or not are however up for debate (heh-heh). And as for the long sentences, sorry about that. I tried to shorten them in this chapter, let me know what you think. And I'm glad to know you'll be sticking around to see how this story will turn out. Thanks.

Red Witch: - one of my most favourite authors on It's great to hear from you again. I hope the battle lives up to your expectation. As for Faith dying… well… we can't have that happening to her… I mean… I got plans for her in the sequel. Oops… did I say sequel? Well… let's see how this story will turn out. I'm sure you'll love what I have planned for our brunette bombshell of a slayer. And yes… I loved that episode where Angel got turned into a puppet. You know the scene where he is walking towards the camera with a sword over his shoulder and Wesley, Gunn, Fred and Spike were following him like soldiers following their leader on each side. God… that scene was so funny I think I was laughing for days. Take care and hey… can't wait to read the next chapter of Evolution XMJ… the last chapter was bloody hilarious. Heh-heh.

Darkstorm5000: - Yo man… how's it going? Thank you for helping me out with the St Croix twin thingy. I found out a little bit about them through the internet but would still appreciate some more information… anything about their personalities you can give me will be more than appreciated. I'm glad that you liked the last chapter. As for Dawn meeting the junior leaguers… I wanted to start out with them as I thought Dawn would feel more comfortable with them than if she was to be introduced to Mr I-Have-A-Stick-Up-My-Ass Summers and Ms Perfect-Redheaded Grey. No… I don't have anything… ok… much against the two but I didn't want Dawn to feel uncomfortable around anyone. I love her too much to put her through anything like that. Anyways… take care and I hope you'll enjoy this latest chapter as well. Loved the new chapter of New Mutants by the way. Can't wait for the newer stories to be posted.

RogueFanKC: - you know… I was just putting some finishing touches on this chapter when I receive that mail from saying someone had just updated their fic. When I saw it was your story, I was like, forget my one… lets see what you have cooked up in your story. I think one of the reasons I take so time to update is not only because of genuine laziness… but the fact that I keep getting distracted by authors updating their stories at around the same time I'm trying to write my own fic. Heh-heh. Anyways… I hope you love this chapter as much as I loved yours. I personally can't wait to see how your crossover with BTVS and the Misfit-verse in your next story with turn out. Take care of yourself. Later.

Ascanius: - hey man… how's it going? Hopefully good. I'm glad that you like this story so far. I think you are the fourth new reviewer here. I just pray that you'll be around to see where this story will take us. As for the punctuations and shift in tenses… I'm very sorry about that. Someone else once mentioned it to me as well. But it's just something I have this habit of overlooking. I will try to minimise them as much as possible but I am myself not sure if my work will be completely free of these mistakes. I hope you'll follow the story either way. Take care and enjoy this new chapter.

Whylime: - Why lime? Why not lime? Heh-heh. Sorry… couldn't help it. Anyways… I'm sorry to leave you guys hanging on a cliff hanger. But I think after you read this chapter, you won't care about that any more. As for bringing in the St Croix twins… lets just say I have plans for them… so better as well introduce them as mutants already living at the mansion than to have to go through the lengthy process of having the X-Men go and con them into joining them (heh-heh). Anyways… I will try to update sooner but really… I can be very lazy at times. You'd be surprised how many times I got thrown out of Starbucks just because I bought just one mug of English Breakfast tea and just sat there at one of their seats for hours at times… really… I'm not joking.

Gregdoreza: - hiya… another new reviewer. I'm glad you like this story. Hope the preview last chapter lives up to your expectation. Take care and hope to hear from you soon again. Later.

Allen Pitt: - hey man… thanks for the info on the twins. Really appreciate it. As for your question about Rogue touching and absorbing Dawn… read on man… I'll be sure to address the issue in a latter chapter. Heh-heh. As for the description you gave for Buffy's slayer powers… yes… she can be every bit as ferocious as Wolverine but the thing is, in the end, she can still be killed. I love Buffy to death but I saw that episode at the end of season six where she almost died because she was shot in the chest. She does have a healing factor, unfortunately its nowhere near where Logan's is. Just wait and see how everything pans out. Take care and thanks for reading my fic. Hope to hear from you soon again.

Uncanny R-Man: - about the distraction… its cool man. I can't be working 24/7 on my own fic now can I. plus… reading fics actually gives me ideas that I could incorporate into my own story at times. Take care of yourself and hey… I'll keep my stories coming and you do the same with yours. Later.

* * *

**DISCLAIMER** – The characters of Angel and Buffy the Vampire Slayer belong to Joss Whedon, the WB, UPN, Mutant Enemy, Twentieth Century Fox and others whom I don't know about. The characters of X-Men Evolution and X-Men in general are owned by Marvel. I am not in any way affiliated with any of the groups or organizations that hold rights over the characters of Angel or Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or X-Men Evolution and neither have I been authorized to write the following story. This is a non-profit fan based effort and no copyright infringement is intended. So, umm… please don't sue.

* * *

**Chapter 5: And First Blood Goes To...**

She didn't understand why she was there… again. All she knew was that she was getting really tired of coming back to this place. Knowing that there was nothing she could do to prevent what was to be expected from happening yet another time, she let herself resign to the nightmare she knew all too well.

Maybe she hadn't been able to stop it because she hadn't been strong enough. It was not as though it mattered any longer…. but then why did she keep coming back to this place. More importantly, why did she keep failing to do in a nightmare what she had failed to carry out in her real life? Well… she guessed this was why what she was experiencing was called a nightmare… and not a dream. At least she still had a little bit of hope in her that told her that maybe things will turn out differently this time around.

She walked through the neighbourhood that she had known all too well. She had after all… grown up here.

Beverly Hills… Los Angeles… California… Home for many of the stars of Hollywood… her home for as long as she could remember.

But then something told her that she shouldn't be there anymore… after all… she hasn't actually returned there since… since…

"Jubilee…" someone called out to her… a female voice… she knew that voice… it's the voice of her… but… that wasn't possible… the woman's voice she was hearing… she had been… along with her… she shook her head as she realised that she couldn't even say it any more than she could think about it. It was not as though it would actually matter in a few more minutes… or was it hours… she could never really tell when she was here.

"Jubilee," startled she tries to find the voice… the road was deserted… se found that a little peculiar … there was always people mulling about in Beverly Hills… sometimes in large groups trying to sneak a peek at their favourite stars in their own yards… or backyards… if they can get past the multimillion dollar security that most of the homes had installed.

"Jubilation where are you?" she flinched slightly. She really didn't like it when they called her using her full name. It made her nervous. She hated feeling nervous. She wondered if she could run in the other direction… maybe head to a mall and live out there till she was a few years older and then come back home. Surely they would've forgiven her by then. Just as she was about to follow through with her plan… she heard the voice again.

"And just where do you think you are going young lady?" only this time … the voice sounded as though it had come from someone standing a lot closer than she would have wanted it to be.

She tentatively turned around… and just as she had suspected, about ten yards or so away… stood Dr. Lee and her mother… Mrs. Lee. Both of them just stood there…in front of their two story house with disapproving scowls on their faces. Mr Lee had his arms locked behind him… standing there like some Military General waiting to punish his troops for something they had done. Jubilee couldn't meet his eyes. But the look her mother was giving her was worse than the one her father had. She could deal with her father being angry at her… she could deal with her father being furious at her… well… ok… probably not furious but she would probably pick it any day over the disappointed look that had come over her mother's face. And she hated disappointing her parents… especially her mother most of all.

Of course she should have thought of that before she had decided to skip her classes and go to the mall.

But she had a valid reason for doing so… after all… it was not as though she was going to go back to classes at that school any longer… not since she had finally been able to convince her parents that the best place for a young mutant teenager would be at the Xavier School for Gifted Youngsters. She had spoken to the Professor and apparently Wolverine and some new guy named Gambit were coming over to California to take her back to Bayville. And since she was leaving that very day… a shopping spree to add to the many things she already had seemed like a very excellent idea.

But now that she was looking into the scowling faces of both her parents… she was wondering if the idea had been worth it or not.

Dejectedly… she started walking towards her parents… all the while however… she couldn't help but shake the feeling that something far worse than her parents berating her for skipping her classes was about to take place. And the slight pain she was feeling in her chest confirmed to her that whatever was about to happen was something she was not going to be able to prevent.

She felt it coming before she saw it. Around the corner… behind her house… the front of what would later turn out to be a black sedan rolled out and onto the street where their house was located. Jubilee had started jogging; dropping her shopping bags… that nice top and shorts she had bought at the mall the last thing on her mind.

The car pulled up in front of their house and stopped. Jubilee had started running by the time she saw the front passenger door of the car open along with the rear door near her parents.

She knew what was going to happen as two men stepped out of the vehicle. She wanted to scream for her mother and father to get inside the house… to just stop standing around and do something… anything to protect themselves from what was about to happen… but the words would not escape her throat. And wasn't she just a few yards away from them… then why did it seem as though the distance between herself and her parents seemed to suddenly grow longer.

She watched as her father turned slowly to face the men who had just stepped onto their front yard… only to take a step back a little startled as one of the men pulled out a gun… its metal surface gleaming in the afternoon sun.

They said something to her startled parents… and then… BANG!

Jubilee cried out as she watched her father fall on the grass in a lifeless heap. She heard her mother cry out and start to rush to her father's side… she doesn't make it. Another loud sound of a gun firing… and her mother joined her father on the grass of her front yard.

She stopped running short of her house… only to find herself in the next instant somehow seated on the ground… right between the two lifeless bodies of her parents. She looked at their faces with tears flowing freely; a subconscious part of her registering what sounded like the click of a gun being readied for firing. She looked up instantly… and saw the two men pointing their guns at her head this time.

She just lost the people who meant more to her than anything else in the world… so she just sat there… looking at the two figures not with hate… or anger… but rather… acceptance. Acceptance of her fate. She was going to die that day… and there was nothing that she was going to do to stop it from happening.

But then something happened… something that had never happened whenever she reaches this part of her dream. The two men… they changed. Two men who had previously been wearing just casual clothes… now were donning hooded robes… and there was something wrong with their eyes…where there were eyes… they now sported empty eye sockets… except there was something similar to an 'x'… or was that another alphabet over them. As though their eyes had been gauged out and then a symbol was placed over them.

This was definitely something that had never happened before. Most times when she would reach this part of her dream she would usually see either Logan or Gambit coming to her rescue as the two men were getting ready to fire their guns and fill her head up with lead… just like they had done in real life. Sometimes she wished they had reached her house just a minute earlier… but of course that hadn't happened.

She however didn't have time to ponder over what how her dream had suddenly changed this time around as one of them suddenly jumped towards her and before she could defend herself she found herself pinned to the ground… with her hands held up over her head. These weren't the people who had killed her parents… she however did not have time to ponder who they were as the second man knelt down beside her, brought out what looked like a ceremonial knife with some types of jewels embedded into the hilt of the blade.

Jubilee… the grief of loosing her parents still at the forefront of her mind… simply accepted what fate seemed to have in store for her … but even then she couldn't help herself from feeling absolutely terrified as a voice from somewhere and everywhere whispered in a bone chilling voice, "From beneath you… it devours."

The hooded figure drew the knife high up over her chest and then and plunged it straight into her heart.

* * *

"Jubilation." 

Someone was calling out to her.

"Jubilation… wake up."

She heard the voice again. Female from the sound of it. Was she still in her… no… someone was shaking her… she could feel it. But she could also feel the knife that had been plunged into her heart just a few moments ago.

"Jubilation… wake up… you are having a nightmare."

Jubilee heard the person shaking her calling out to her by her name… but in her nightmare induced sleep… except for her name she couldn't make out much of what was being said. After another shake, Jubilee's eyes snapped open.

"Good… you're finally…" the female voice was cut off as Jubilee, still in the throngs of her nightmare… raised her hands up and sent out a stream of pyrotechnic plasma and blasted the person across the room. It was exactly at that moment that she finally awoke fully to realise that she was safe in her room… in her bed… which meant… "Oh god," she thought as she realised she had just sent her roommate flying across the room.

"Monet," Jubilee screamed out as she got up frantically from her bed, only to trip on her bed sheets with a loud "whoomp," that had somehow taken her legs hostage in the dark. She got up again, disentangled herself from the bed sheet and rushed to the dark figure on the other side of the room, who was just picking herself up from her sprawled position on the floor with a groan.

"Omigod, omigod, omigod, areyaalright? I'msoooosorryaboutthat, Iswearididn'tknowitwasyou, areyaalright? pleasedon'ttelltheprofessor, I'msoooosorry, I'msoooosorry, I'msoooosorryM," Jubilee kept saying without taking a breath as she helped the young powerhouse from Monaco known as Monet St Croix to her feet.

Monet listened to the young Asian American girl prattle on for about thirty seconds before she finally decided that she was still not an expert on Jubilee speak… especially when the girl goes into her talking-at-the-speed-light-mode, and therefore clamped a hand over the girl's mouth to silence her. Yes… some would consider this an extremely rude action but unfortunately those people had never had the pleasure of meeting Jubilation Lee, especially when she was in a panicked state as the one in question. This was further proven as even after the hand had been clamped over her mouth… the Asian American girl still kept on mumbling apologies through the hand.

Monet rolled her eyes and asked why she couldn't get someone like Amara as her roommate, she didn't think the Nova Romanian Princess would have given her this much grief if she had accidentally used her powers on her.

"Jubilee," Monet started as Jubilee stopped mumbling apologies through Monet's hand over her mouth and just stared apologetically at the girl. "I understand it was an accident, I am invulnerable to most kinds of physical attacks and therefore am quiet alright, I will not tell the Professor about this incident, but if you do not shut up and stay that way… I will be forced to throw you out of the room, not in the hallway, but onto the grounds outside… through the balcony… do I make myself clear?"

Jubilee looked at the dark-skinned girl with her eyes as wide as saucers, then turned and looked at the balcony doors, looked back at Monet again, and gulped before nodding her head to indicate she will be quiet.

Monet actually frowned a little at this. Yes, she could carry out what she had just threatened to do, but after about two months of living with the Asian American girl, she knew very well that Jubilee would've rather gone and done exactly the opposite just to push Monet's buttons than to take a threat lying down. Taking a closer look at the younger girl now, she saw how the nightmare had really shaken her up.

Being someone who also suffered from nightmares of a certain sibling coming back into her life and trying to kill or do something worse to her or her twin baby sisters, Monet realised that the nightmare Jubilee was having must have been terrifying to have her acting this docile. Even after sharing the room with her for two months, they haven't quite gotten to the stage where they could consider themselves good friends. Well… they do start each and every day glaring at each other… that had to mean something. Either way, she couldn't help but feel a little concerned about the young Asian.

And as though able to see the expression that had crossed over Monet's face, Jubilee's expression suddenly hardened as she swatted away Monet's hand from over her mouth and glared at the dark beauty before she said, "I'd like to see you try."

Now there's the Jubilee she knew… crossed Monet's mind. Always thinking she can take care of herself and would probably never need anyone. Monet glared right back at the girl and then decided to change the subject.

"You were having another nightmare," Monet stated.

Jubilee's eyes widened for a split second before she dismissed it by saying, "so… big deal… not like you don't have them either."

"I do," Monet simply replied. "But unlike you… I do not project my dreams."

Jubilee swallowed the lump in her throat as she realised that Monet may have glimpsed into her nightmare… she really… really hated telepaths… well… except for anyone who wasn't the Professor or Jean.

"Y-Ya saw what I was…" Jubilee started but was cut off as Monet waved it off and said, "No… I did not need to enter your mind to see what was going on… you were projecting fear on a grand scale… I'm surprised you didn't wake up the Professor or Jean."

Jubilee sighed in relief. She just wanted to forget about the dream. She had no idea what the hell those two men turned into, and something in her told her she really didn't want to know. "Listen, I'm sorry for waking you," Jubilee said with sincerity. When it seemed as though Monet was about to protest and ask more about the dream, Jubilee just said, "listen M, I'm really tired and I don't wanna talk about it… so just drop it, k… let's just get back to sleep."

Monet frowned a little at how easily Jubilee had dismissed her nightmare. She watched as Jubilee got into her bed and got under the covers. Jubilee turned to look at Monet staring at her and couldn't stop herself from feeling a little annoyed as she asked, "what?"

"One of these days… you are going to have to talk to the Professor about these nightmares you have." Monet's faced softened a little as she added, "take it from someone who knows… it is not healthy to keep those feelings bottled up."

Jubilee stared at Monet for a few seconds before saying, "wow M… didn't know ya could actually be nice and care about someone like us normal folks."

"Consider it my good deed for the day," Monet replied flippantly. After she finished, she started heading towards the door.

"Umm… M… maybe I paffed ya harder than I had thought… but yer bed's on that corner there," Jubilee said as she pointed to the bed on the other side of the room.

Monet scowled at the younger girl before stating, "I needed to drink a glass of water." She smiled mock sweetly at the younger girl before asking, "Would you like a glass as well?"

"Umm… sure," Jubilee replied as she couldn't help but be a little surprised at how nice Monet was acting for once.

"Good… I'm sure you can get it yourself," Monet said as she stepped out of the room and into the hallway.

'Knew it was too good to be true,' Jubilee thought as she started to debate on the merits of getting up from her comfy bed and walking all the way downstairs to the kitchen to drink a glass of water. That dream had left her a little dry. Even though she knew that she and Monet will most probably never be good friends, she couldn't stop herself from feeling a little guilty about how easily her paffs could've hurt the girl from Monaco if she hadn't been nearly indestructible. Though she would never admit it, she was glad that the Professor had assigned Monet to her room. True, the girl had a really big chip on her shoulder, but she'd rather have someone like Monet who had a chip on her shoulder and be indestructible than have someone like Rahne or any of the other girls as her roommate. At least, Monet was one of the only people in the mansion who could take more than Jubilee would ever be able to dish out. Plus… Rahne or any of the other girls would have taken her head off by asking too many questions. Monet for one didn't care much either way and for that she was grateful.

* * *

Outside her room however, unknown to Jubilee, Monet was actually leaning against the door taking in a few deep breaths. She was trying to get her heart from racing and go back into its normal rhythm as a guilty expression came over her face. 

She had lied to her roommate. She hadn't meant to but after seeing how Jubilee had been thrashing around in her bed looking like as though the devil himself was causing her harm, she had thought that a sneak peek into her mind would at least give some insight into what it was that was causing her roommate this much discomfort. She may never show it to the outside world, but after her brother's mutation had gotten out of hand and he had transformed into the creature known as Emplate and had killed her mother right in front of herself and her twin sisters… she had come to treasure every friend she made afterwards. She didn't know how long she was going to live… with her advanced healing and near invulnerability, she could guess it would be a long time. But if she was to pass away the next day, she would at least be content in knowing that the people at the Xavier Mansion would be more than willing to take care of her sisters. She walked down the hall and stopped in front of a room. She opened the door a little and peered at the sleeping form of her young twin sisters Claudette and Nicole.

Children so young should never have to witness the death of their parents… especially when the person who took their mother away from them was someone they loved dearly. 'Oh Marius, how could you do this to us?' Monet sighed as she closed the door quietly and headed downstairs to get the aforementioned glass of water.

As she walked through the mansion, her mind went back to the dream that Jubilee was having. She would probably never admit it but she actually felt a little scared for the young Asian American. She remembered feeling the desperation as Jubilee tried to warn her parents against what was about to happen and then simply watching as both her parents were gunned down in front of her. But that was not what had scared the nearly indestructible Monet. Even the way the men had transformed into these deformed individuals and that voice that had whispered the words, "from beneath you… it devours" had not been enough to truly scare Monet. What had scared her however was how easily Jubilee had simply resigned to her fate. The Jubilee she knew would have fought tooth and nail for her own survival… but the Jubilee in the dream… she looked so defeated that if Monet hadn't known that she was indeed in Jubilee's mind at the time, she would have thought the girl was a doppelganger.

She had long suspected that the Professor had roomed them together because both of them had suffered great personal loss… true, while Monet had lost only her mother, Jubilee had lost her only known relatives. Monet wondered if she would have given in to whatever fate had in store for her at the hands of her brother had she also lost everyone she had ever loved. She realised that the Professor had most probably roomed the two together in hopes that both will be able to help each other move past what had actually been a traumatising event for the both of them.

'Yeah… fat chance,' thought Monet.

Jubilee hated Monet because she always acted perfect and in control and everything. Little did Jubilee know that Monet had to act this way because after her mother had died, her father had nearly fallen apart… occupying himself with his work with little or no time for his children. Claudette and Nicole had needed someone to turn to in their time of need… and Monet had decided to become the rock they could lean on. And she would remain to be their rock no matter what people, from her roommate to other students at the institute thought of her.

She however hoped that Logan, someone Jubilee had become extremely close to from what she had seen would come back home soon. Though Gambit made up for the missing Wolverine by spending nearly every waking hour with the young Asian American, treating her like the little sister he never had, in some ways he was still not a replacement for Logan. Monet… after staying at the mansion for the last two months had realised that there was a definite difference in the way Logan and Gambit treated Jubilee. While Gambit was always ready to spend time with Jubilee in pulling pranks with her to doing just about anything that they could imagine they would be able to get away with… Logan on the other hand played the role of a sterner father figure who would not take part in most things Jubilee would do with Gambit… but rather be there to give her advice on certain things, admonish her for wrongs she may have done, but most importantly… just letting her know that she will always have someone to fall back on no matter what.

Unfortunately since Logan was away on… personal business… which of course should be mentioned only happens each and every other week… Jubilee has been getting extremely restless. Snapping at people more... losing her temper at the slightest things… Monet didn't know why, but for some reason the Canadian wild man seemed to have an almost calming effect on Jubilee. Even she herself wished that Logan would come back to the mansion.

As she was about to enter the kitchen she suddenly stopped and strained her heightened sense of hearing as she picked up what sounded like the faint roar of a motorbike engine in the distant… and it was heading towards the mansion. Monet actually let a little smile pass over her face as she realised that her wish to have Logan back at the mansion was on the verge of coming true.

But then she remembered that Logan really didn't like to see anyone up and about after bedtime and therefore decided to have her glass of water and head upstairs quickly.

* * *

Back upstairs, Jubilee was tossing and turning in her bed trying to see if she could get into a more comfortable position. Unfortunately the dream had shaken her up so much that she was almost afraid to go back to sleep. A silent part of her cried out for the mother she knew was not around to comfort her any longer. Another part cried out for her father to come into her room and tell her everything was going to be alright. But the fact was that they were gone, and no matter how much she wanted them back, that was never going to happen. 

There was another part that actually wanted her Wolvie to be back at the mansion. She understood why he had to go away once again… but even then she couldn't stop herself from feeling a little jealous of the person that had taken him away from her. She had a valid… but selfish reason for wanting him all to herself. Most at the institute thought that she had a crush on the Wolverine… but in actuality, she didn't. It was as simple as that.

She loved Logan yes, but it was more as a mentor, friend and father figure than anything else. True… she loved Gambit like as though they were lost siblings from an old life reunited in a reincarnated life… only in this life… she was Chinese… and he was Caucasian… and a Cajun to top it off. The gods must have messed up with the body somehow. She was sure of it… well… pretty much.

But there was a reason why she loved Logan more than any other person in the world… but she was not ready to voice that reason even to herself. She wondered what he would think of her if he ever found out why Jubilee wanted to be around him so much… why she cared for him more than any other person on the planet.

KRAAAASHHKKKNNNG!

Jubilee however didn't have time to contemplate about her relationship with Logan as the loud sound of her balcony door breaking apart made her literally jump up from her bed in surprise. But after the surprise came the fear. She watched in horror as two men, wearing hooded robes, carrying daggers stalked up to her.

"Nononononoono," Jubilee was frozen in place. She kept shaking her head as if trying to force the two advancing men away by casting them as illusions conjured up by her mind. But it was not working. There was nothing holding her in one place except for the fear that had gripped her as soon as she had seen that the two men looked exactly like the ones who had killed her in her nightmare bore down on her.

* * *

Across the halls, the sound of glass breaking awakened one Rahne Sinclair. She notices that she was not the only one who had been awakened. She looked over to her roommate Dani Moonstar, who, feeling a little under the weather had been resting up in her room the entire day. Dani Moonstar also awakened by the sound of glass shattering looked over at her roommate Rahne with a quizzical expression on her face. 

"What in de world de ye think that was all aboot?" the young redhead asked her Cheyenne roommate.

"I have no idea," Danielle responded as she got up from her bed a little groggily and headed towards the door. "Sounded like it came from Jubilee's room," she added.

Rahne, being a werewolf, was instantly more alert than her roommate. She stepped out of her room before Danielle and walked over to the room that Jubilee and Monet was sharing.

* * *

Downstairs, Monet was just about to leave the kitchen when the sound of glass breaking suddenly caught her hearing. She reached out with her telepathy to see if everyone was alright or not, and was almost taken aback by the amount of paralyzing fear that was emanating from one person… her roommate Jubilee. It was the same paralyzing fear she had felt when in Jubilee's dream. In a blur, she was speeding back to her room.

* * *

Rahne Sinclair had just opened the door to Jubilee's room when she almost staggered back at the smell of fear that was emanating from her housemate. Then she saw the figures that were approaching a frozen Jubilee. 

"HEY," she shouted attracting the attention of one person. If she had known their reaction would be this fast, she probably would have changed into her lupine form before calling out to the intruders. Because as soon as she had called out, one of the hooded figures pulled out a knife from within the robe and threw it right at the heart of the young werewolf.

Rahne eyes widened as she saw the knife heading towards her. Her roommate however was faster at reacting and pushed the young Scottish out of her way. She however cried out as the knife found its mark as it dug into her right arm.

"Dani," Rahne cried out as her roommate fell on top of her in the hallway, a pained expression on her face.

* * *

In the master bedroom, Professor Charles Xavier woke up and looked frantically around the room. He had very rarely felt such fear emanating from one person. A quick scan told him what he needed to know. One of his students was in danger… and one has already been injured. THAT was not going to be tolerated. 

In the next instant, almost everyone who was anyone in the mansion felt the psychic call for help.

* * *

Across the mansion figures started to get up, all sleepiness gone from their veins.

* * *

A man with dark brown hair reached out for his ruby quartz visor and got up from his bed to rush to where help was needed.

* * *

A beautiful red headed telepath and telekinetic narrowed her eyes as she reached out to see where the danger was even as she headed out of her room.

* * *

A man with shaggy brown hair, and eyes that rightfully earned him the nickname of Le Diable Blanc raced towards his surrogate sister's room… a bow staff extended to its full length and ready to use in an offensive manner in his hand.

* * *

A girl with a streak of white hair in front of her head gets up from her bed, and mutters, "ah am starting ta get reahly tah'ed of these things," before pulling on a pair of gloves and rushing out of the room she shared with her roommate Kitty Pryde. Kitty Pryde who was at the time away from the mansion visiting her parents.

* * *

At the front of the mansion, near the large front gates, a bike, the pride of one Canadian individual lies on the grass on its side. Its fate not as important as what was going inside the mansion as the figure of the most dangerous mutant on the planet moved at breakneck speed towards the mansion… responding to a telepathic cry from the man who had given him a place he had called home over the past decade.

* * *

Somewhere in the distance, thunder rumbled… letting everyone know that a goddess… and an angry one at that had just awakened.

* * *

Though it had taken Monet just a few second to reach her room, she wished she had tried to come a little faster as she watched the knife embed itself into Dani Moonstar's arm. Then she saw something that shocked her to the core of her being. Someone that looked like the hooded figure in Jubilee's dream just walked out of her room and raised a machete to strike the still downed position of Rahne and Danielle. 

Monet, shook herself out of her shock as she realised what was about to happen, so she did what came naturally to any mutant staying at the Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters.

Fighting.

She grabbed the hooded figure from the back, and before the figure could react, Monet had raised the figure over her head and brought the figure crashing down in a bone crunching heap. The figure didn't move and neither did it get up. Monet shouted at Rahne, "Take Danielle to the med-bay… NOW."

She rushed into her room to see another hooded figure holding a ceremonial looking dagger in one hand and with the other chocking the life out of Jubilee who was… just as she had expected… frozen like a statue. The hooded figure pulled back the knife… ready to drive it into Jubilee's stomach. He never reached that part as he suddenly felt his arm being grabbed and then the sickening crack of bones breaking.

"Yes, I realise she can be quite infuriating at times. However, I doubt killing her will solve anything." Monet said with a straight face as in another blur she had taken the man's other arm off Jubilee's throat, making sure to break a few bones in the process. Monet threw the man across the room with such force that he literally embedded himself into the wall, and stuck there for the briefest of seconds before falling to the floor in an undignified heap.

Monet turned to her roommate with a look of concern as she saw the terrified look on her roommate's face. She had, never actually seen Jubilee act so petrified. "Jubilation," Monet asked the young Asian American but got no response as Jubilee was still busy staring at the crumpled heap lying on the floor. "Jubilee," Monet cried out again as Jubilee finally turned to look at her roommate with her mouth hanging open… as if she was trying to find words but at the moment she couldn't. Suddenly the crunching on boots on grass turned both the girl's attention to the balcony and even Monet had to take a step back as she watched more of the hooded figures entered through the balcony doors… nearly six of them.

"Jubilation, this may perhaps not be that good a time to freeze up," Monet said as she clenched her fists in anticipation of the fight that was sure to come. But the hooded figure suddenly stopped as a few playing cards, all of them pulsating with a pinkish energy suddenly found its mark right in between their feet.

"Bonjour mes amis," both Monet and Jubilee turned their heads in the direction of the voice to see Gambit standing at the entrance to the room with stack of playing cards in between his fingers, and his bow staff extended to its full length in the other hand. "But Gambit don' t'ink y'all are s'pposed t' be here." He turned to look at Monet and Jubilee and shouted, "Take cover."

In the next instance, Monet had grabbed Jubilee and levitated to the top of the room, just as the cards charged with kinetic energy exploded, sending all the hooded figures sprawling to the floor. The two that had brought up the rear were not that affected and immediately got up on their feet. By the time they got to their feet however, Gambit was already swinging his staff at the two. The first swing connected with the left side of the head of one of the hooded figure, and then the Cajun thief brought the staff back in an arc to smack the second hooded figure on the right side of his head. Before the two had any time to recover from the blow each had received, Gambit twirled around with his bow staff held up high above their head and brought it around in a devastating arc hitting both the hooded figures in the face in succession and dropping them both to the floor.

Gambit would have praised himself if it wasn't for the fact that as the two went down; the other four were just starting to pick themselves up. And to make things worse, it seemed as though more figures were climbing their way into the mansion. What confused Gambit more was the fact that they all seemed to be coming through just one entrance. They could have used the other entrances all around the mansion, so he wondered what it was that they were after in this particular room.

Monet floated over to Gambit's side with Jubilee. As soon as they touched down however, Gambit grabbed Jubilee by the shoulders and asked her, "P'tite, y' be alri'ht?"

He was so busy trying to see if Jubilee was alright or not that he did not see the dagger that was being thrown at him. If it wasn't for a beam of concentrated optic blast from none other than the leader of the X-Men deflecting it from its target, it could have very well found its mark somewhere around the Cajun's lower back.

"Watch your back Cajun," said the X-Men leader known as Cyclops as he rushed into the room followed by Rogue.

The hooded figure that threw the dagger however found himself blasted to the floor by a stream of pyrotechnic fireworks by one Jubilation Lee who had finally snapped out of her shock.

"Get the hell away from him," Jubilee growled at the downed figure as she took her place between Gambit and Scott who had his hand on the side of his visor ready to blast at the tiniest movement of hostility from the intruders. Rogue and Monet took their places on the other side of the Cajun thief. For a few seconds, no one moved. And then, all hell broke loose.

The hooded figures charged the assembled residents of the X-Men. Rogue was using her super-strength to throw them left and right, but she soon found out that the intruders were a lot tougher than she had expected. Even though she was both faster and stronger than the intruders who were attacking, she was still being overcome as she tried desperately to keep them from touching any part of her exposed skin. It was not as though any of the X-Men were wearing their 'work clothes'.

Just like Rogue, Monet was taking on a few of the hooded figures at a time, trying to make as quick a work of them as she possibly could. On the other side of the room, Scott was blasting away at the figures that were trying to make their way through the balcony doors and into the room.

"What de 'ell do dese guys want?" Gambit said as he saw more of the figures pouring into the mansion through the open balcony.

"Me," Jubilee said without any hesitation as she blasted her fireworks at one of the figures and sent him sprawling back into another one.

"Yah sound pretty… ugh… sure sugah," Rogue said with a grunt as two of the figures rushed her and were able to take her down to the floor. In an instant however, she was able to throw them off her and get up from the floor only to find more of the hooded figures heading her way.

"Trust me," Jubilee declared as she paffed another one of the intruders. "I…"

She was about to respond when suddenly she heard Cyclops shout, "Jubilee, get down," as he shot a beam at one of the figure who was heading towards Jubilee. Jubilee however was not able to move fast enough as the figure dodged the beam and launched himself at Jubilee. But not to attack her, but to give her a heavy push in one direction. As Jubilee stumbled forward loosing her balance, which was very hard for her to do as she was a trained gymnast, another one of the hooded figures grabbed her from the front and threw her in the direction of the balcony. As Jubilee found herself falling in the direction of the balcony with nothing to stop her fall, she suddenly found herself in the arms of another one of the intruders, but this time, to her horror, the intruder effortlessly picked her up and threw her off her second story balcony.

* * *

The Canadian wild man burst through the front doors of the mansion at around the same time Jubilee was tossed out of her own balcony. He knew where the trouble was and he also felt his heart stiffened involuntarily as the thought of someone he had started to care for very much being in danger flashed in his mind. For some reason, Professor Xavier had telepathically told him that Jubilee was the main target of this attack. He had always trusted Chuck with everything and he knew for certain that the man wouldn't make a claim like that without something to back it up. 

In less than a few seconds, he had already climbed the stairs and was almost nearing the room Jubilee shared with Monet. His heightened senses picked up the running steps of… yes… Berzerker and Iceman coming in from the other side. They had probably been busy making sure the younger children were safe from the intruders.

He gave out a low growl as his heightened sense of smell picked up the scent of fresh blood in the hallway… Dani Moonstar's blood. He didn't let himself stop to think, he needed to get himself into the thick of the fight… there… he was going to exact his vengeance on the intruders for spilling the blood of someone under his care.

* * *

"AAAAHHH!" Jubilee cried out as she fell nearly fifteen feet to the grass on the lawn below. She heard a few of her housemates cry out for her as she fell; however, she knew there really wasn't going to be anyone to catch her this time around. She tried to land on her feet but the moment she did so, she did it a little sideways and nearly passed out as the sound of a bone in her left leg cracking rang out through the night.

* * *

The others who had been fighting the intruders were taken aback by this turn of events. These eyeless, speechless, intruders with weaponry that probably would have looked better used in The Dark Ages had just executed a coordinated attack on not only distracting the other X-Men by forcing each of them to face more than a few opponents at a time but also make certain that their target, who apparently was Jubilee, was taken out at the same time. No… not taken out, merely separated from them. As more of the figures jumped each of them from going out and helping the young American Asian girl outside, a feeling of dread came over them as they watched two of the intruders separate themselves from the attacking group and head towards the balcony and jump down onto the mansion grounds… their intentions when it came to Jubilee clear in the minds of the X-Men.

* * *

Outside on the lawn, Jubilee tried desperately to stay conscious. She had never really had the displeasure of having any of her bones broken, but she knew that this was definitely something she would want to avoid in the near future. However, the slight sound of bodies falling near her alerted her to the presence of someone nearing her. 

She looked up and immediately wished she hadn't. Two of the intruders from the fight upstairs had just dropped down from the balcony and were heading straight for her. She tried to squirm out of the way, but every time she moved, unimaginable pain would flow from her legs to her head.

Suddenly, one of the figures rushed her and she found herself pinned to the ground with the intruder holding both her hands above her hand. The second intruder walked up to her and knelt down beside her and drew a ceremonial looking dagger out of the robe he was wearing.

Jubilee belatedly realised this was the same thing that had happened to her in her nightmare no less than fifteen minutes ago. She didn't want to die… she knew it… especially since she has had a chance at a new family. But she also knew that injured and on the brink of loosing consciousness, she fared little chance to save herself from what was about to happen.

The intruder with the dagger raised it high above her stomach. Well… at least… if the nightmare was any indication, she already knew what the pain was going to be like.

* * *

In the heat of the battle upstairs, Gambit was cursing as he tried to get to his surrogate sister. Rogue had finally had enough of how easily the intruders had been able to separate Jubilee from them. Scott for once was about to loose his cool as he used optic blasts after optic blasts trying to send these intruders flying with little success. It was amazing how they were able to dodge his beams without being able to see them. Monet was also worried about her roommate. Unlike Rogue, she had no qualms about holding back as she now broke bones with each contact her fists made with the intruders. 

Then Gambit heard it.

SKNIT.

He smiled as he saw a blur running past the battle and on towards the balcony.

"Nice timin' ol' man, nice timin'," Gambit chuckled as he felt that the battle was finally going to turn in their favour.

The blur dodged every attack that came his way, not bothering with any of them as he had one mission and one mission on his mind only. And the centre of the mission was none other than an Asian American girl whom he had once promised to take care of and keep safe. Soundlessly, he somersaulted over the railing of the balcony and landed behind an intruder who had a dagger raised high above that very girl he had made the promise to.

* * *

Jubilee's eyes widened a little at the sight of the dagger raised high above her. She wished she would at least descend into unconsciousness. She in actual fact had no inclination to watching herself getting stabbed. She closed her eyes as she watched the intruder geared up to strike. And waited for the inevitable pain that was to come… and despite the fact that she heard the sounds of metal piercing flesh with a 'skluch', she was slightly surprised when she felt no pain at all. 

She opened her eyes cautiously and gasped in surprise, and then… she felt joy like she had never felt before.

The intruder holding the blade above her abdomen had this stunned expression on his face. His gaze on the other hand, if he had any eyes, was on the pointed tips of six knives that had forced themselves through his body and were protruding now from his chest.

Jubilee next heard the unmistakable roar of her mentor, father figure and best friend as the intruder was literally picked off the ground and tossed some yards away. The intruder did not get up. She watched as the man she had nicknamed Wolvie turned around, looking like a vicious animal ready to pounce on the intruder that was holding her down.

Wolvie didn't say anything. He just launched himself at the figure making the intruder loose his hold on Jubilee as the intruder found himself on the receiving end of adamantium laced claws. Jubilee vaguely recalled the sounds of other figures trying to get to her, but she let herself succumb to unconsciousness… knowing in her heart that her Wolvie was here… and as long as Wolvie was here… everything was going to turn out ok for her.

* * *

Upstairs, with the arrival of Berserker and Iceman, the intruders were either shocked, iced, blasted, smacked on the head with a bow staff with enough force to shatter concrete, or thrown against walls with such force that they found themselves lying on the floor as broken heaps of bones. 

In another two minutes, the battle was over.

* * *

Charles Xavier was tending to the wounds of one Dani Moonstar with her roommate watching over her sobbing as Tabitha, an older member of the institute tried to soothe the distraught child. 

The door to the med-bay opened and he was greeted with the sight of the feral Canadian named Wolverine walking into the med-bay carrying an unconscious Jubilee in his arms. The Professor noticed the patches of blood that covered the feral Canadian's clothes, and decided he would rather not know what became of their intruders. Plus, Jean and Scott along with a few of the others were most probably dealing with how to handle the ones that were still alive.

"Broke her leg… hairline fracture but a fracture none the less… you take care of Moonstar and I'll attend to Jubes here," the man Professor Charles Xavier had called friend for nearly a decade growled out as he laid the unconscious girl onto a medical gurney and started to work on the girl. He doesn't speak with anyone as he finally finished putting a cast over the girl's leg. It was going to take a week or two at best, but she was going to be alright, and that's all that mattered. By the time he had finished, Rahne had been taken up to sleep in another room and there was only he himself and Charles left in the med-bay.

He finally turned to regard the bald man who had long since tended to the wounds of another one of his charges and finally asked, "So Chuck… ya wanna tell me what in flamin' hell is going on here?"

Professor Charles Xavier regarded his friend for a few seconds before sighing and saying, "Something has been brought to my attention in the time you have been away."

"What's that something got to do with Jubes?" Logan growled out.

Professor Charles Xavier looked at his friend and turned his head towards the white sterile tiles of the floor in the medical bay as he said, "everything." He looked back up at the Canadian with immense gratitude showing through his eyes as he said, "but first… welcome home Logan… I don't think you could've picked a better time than this."

Logan just grunted with a nod but crossed his massive arms in front of his chest as he waited for the Professor to fill him in on what was going on.

* * *

**To Be Continued…**

* * *

**Author's Notes: -**

Hey all… hope you enjoyed this chapter as well. Sorry for the late update but I really couldn't help it. Even though I have the story planned to the end, sometimes I just don't feel like working on my fanfics. I'm sure I'm not the only one among us who suffers from the disease that is popularly known as laziness (heh-heh). Anyways… I know I promised that we were going to see what Jubilee's decision was going to be this chapter regarding her status as a Potential Slayer… but unfortunately, I had to push it into the next chapter. I just wanted to deal with what happened at the mansion this chapter… and of course… have the first appearance of my favourite X-Men in this fic… The Wolverine (wooohooo).

Once again, I won't guarantee it but I hope to post the next chapter in another week or so… two weeks at the most. So tune in next time to find out what will happen next as we pick up from where we left off in Chapter 4 as Dawn and Giles arrive back at the mansion. How will Logan and Gambit take to the news of Jubilee being a potential slayer? How will the rest of the X-Men react to this information? Calls will be made and X-Men who are away will return to the fold. Remember… this story happens about nine months after the X-Men Evolution Series ended… can you guess which new members have joined the X-Team in that time? Well… keep on guessing guys… because the only way you're going to find out is if you read the next chapter.

In the mean time, take care of yourself and please… send me your Reviews. I love hearing what you think of my story. The more reviews I get, the more I'm tempted to write the next chapter faster. Last chapter I had like 12 reviews… lets see if we can reach 15 or above this time around.

**REVIEW… REVIEW… REVIEW**


	6. A Rock and a Hard Place

**DISCLAIMER **– The characters of Angel and Buffy the Vampire Slayer belong to Joss Whedon, the WB, UPN, Mutant Enemy, Twentieth Century Fox and others whom I don't know about. The characters of X-Men Evolution are owned by Marvel. I am not in any way affiliated with any of the groups or organizations that hold rights over the characters of Angel or Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or X-Men Evolution and neither have I been authorized to write the following story. This is a non-profit fan based effort and no copyright infringement is intended. So, umm… please don't sue.

The plotline this story follows however is completely mine and therefore I would appreciate it if you would kindly let me know before using any aspect of this story. Also… if you want to archive it… please just drop me a message.

**

* * *

Chapter 6: A Rock and a Hard Place **

* * *

Professor Charles Xavier, founder of the X-Men, and self-appointed mentor to the next generation of mutant superheroes didn't truly know what he was going to do at the current moment. He had just engaged about half an hour of his time to explain why the mansion had been attacked less than an hour ago, and exactly why it appeared these so called Harbingers of the First Evil, known as Bringers were after one of his student… a student by the name of Jubilation Lee. 

Unfortunately, he had had to explain what was going on to a man who had become somewhat of a surrogate father to the young Asian American… just like he had been for Rogue ever since the young southerner arrived at the X-Mansion. And the manner in which the Canadian was pacing back and forth, muttering curses that the Professor would guarantee were not intended for the ears of the younger students at the mansion… in fact… he didn't believe they were intended for his ears as well… he knew that the man was taking it all in stride.

Logan turned and punched the wall outside the med-bay making a slight dent at the point of impact. The Professor winced slightly in his chair as Logan had landed the punch while wondering how the steel reinforced walls couldn't withstand the punch and at the same time sarcastically realising that Logan was processing all the information very well indeed.

"Logan," Professor Xavier called out to his friend… who finally stopped pacing and turned to look at the wheel-chair bound man.

Logan suddenly felt a little guilty about taking his frustrations out on the defenceless wall of the hallway outside the infirmary and said to the Professor as he rubbed some of the tension out from the back of his neck. "Umm… sorry about taking it out on the wall… I'll uh… get it fixed tomorrow."

"Don't think anything of it," the Professor just waved it off as nothing while at the same time wondering if he could get the walls titanium reinforced… or maybe adamantium… which would most certainly fair better against the feral Canadian. "I was however hoping to hear your input on the whole thing really."

Logan frowned a little and asked, "How can ya be so sure that this watcher guy was telling the truth?" Logan shrugged his shoulders and added, "For all you know… it could be Ogun trying to get to me again… only this time he's decided to go through one of my charges."

"Logan," the Professor responded calmly, "you cut his head off the last time around… I doubt even Ogun is capable of carrying something like this out without a head on his shoulders."

"You said that this Watcher guy," Logan started again as the Professor added that the said Watcher guy's name was "Rupert Giles." To which Logan just snorted out a "Whatever!"

Logan then continued on, "Like I was saying… this… Rupert … said that this First Evil appears in the form of a ghost… like an illusion right? Maybe Farouk's somehow returned and instead of just going for Ro this time around, he's trying to go for folks she cares about."

"If the Shadow King ever returned from his prison in the astral plane… trust me when I say this Logan… I. Would. Have. Known." The Professor stated with such confidence that it brook no room for disagreement.

Logan growled out as he ultimately leaned back against the wall, crossed his arms in front of his chest and sighed in frustration previous to asking the man in the wheel chair, "So tell me Chuck… how the hell am I supposed to fight something that doesn't even have a physical form?"

The Professor for his part didn't have an answer to his friend's question. True, only a handful of the students of the Xavier Mansion had dealt with the supernatural… but it was still one area the Professor always thought best to avoid. He may always keep an open mind about things, but he was still a scientist and scholar first. It was hard… sometimes for him to deal with things, creatures and beings that very much operated outside the laws of written physics. If it wasn't for the fact that his own stepbrother Cain Marko had been exposed to the power of the crimson gem of Cyttorak, he would never even have known that there was such a thing called mysticism.

The two man just stayed there, one standing whilst the other sitting in the hallway outside the med-bay, partaking in a few minutes of companionable silence until at long last the Professor looked up to ask the Canadian feral mutant, "so Logan… how was your trip?"

As another look of disappointment crossed the man's features, Professor Xavier suddenly felt like apologising to him for asking him about his excursion. He knew specifically why the Canadian had been taking his leave from the mansion more and more in the past nine months subsequent to dealing with the entire Apocalypse incident… well… him and just a few others knew those reasons. But from the near defeated look that had crossed his friend's face at the mention of his trip away from home, he knew that things had not gone as he had wished-for this time around… yet again.

"Ya know how hard it is ta track someone down who's got the exact same scent as you?" Logan asked the Professor who just shook his head as he really didn't know how to accomplish what Logan had just suggested.

"I'm sorry to hear you couldn't find her Logan," the Professor said earnestly. "And I'm even sorrier that I could not track her down via Cerebro."

"Ain't yer fault Chuck," Logan replied. "If I was her… I'd concentrate on being invisible to all kinds of detection systems as well."

He paused for a few seconds… looking straight at the man who had not only given him a home, but rather a noble cause to live for and chuckled humourlessly before adding, "Ya know… its real funny… I finally find someone who is probably the closest thing I'll ever have to a family… not ta mention Fury's finally told me that she could stay with me as long as I can keep her in check… and what happens… she disappears without a flamin' trace."

The Professor once again found himself with nothing to say.

"Go get some rest Chuck," Logan recommended. When it seemed as though the Professor was about to object, Logan added, "ya need the rest... I'll have a look at Jubilee… then go down and have a few words with our guests downstairs in the Danger Room." He made emphasis of exactly how much talking there was going to be involved when he went down to meet with their uninvited visitors as he unsheathed the claws of his right hand before sheathing them back inside his forearms.

"I was in fact hoping that you'd wait till morning at the least," The Professor said. When Logan looked at him quizzically, the Professor continued, "I'm going to have Mr Giles brought over to the mansion in the morning…he told me that the odds of Jubilee being attacked while she was with us was zero to none. I desire to find out whether we need to prepare for any additional aggressions of this sort."

"Good," Logan growled out. "I need ta have a few words with this Mr Giles as well."

The way Logan said this made the Professor recognize that he was particularly irritated at the man for bringing this problem into Jubilee's life.

"Don't blame the man Logan," the Professor said as he started wheeling out and towards the elevator. "If it was not for him, we in all probability would not even have known that these Bringers were after Jubilee in the first place."

"Don't bet on it too much Chuck," Logan grunted. "For all we know… this First Evil thing could've followed him all the way from Sunnydale."

Charles Xavier contemplated about this and decided that he was going to have a word with Giles come morning regarding exactly how far the range of this First Evil entity might actually be outside of the small town of Sunnydale. The very last thing he wanted was his students all of a sudden starting to witness ghosts of people long departed haunting the halls of the X-Mansion.

Logan heard the elevator door close and then he turned and moved towards the med-bay. The sliding doors to the med-bay opened with just a swishing sound as he made his way in to see Dani Moonstar sleeping in one bed and Jubilee laying in another one. Storm was seated in between the two in a chair reading something to keep herself occupied as the other two slept. She looked up and greeted him with a weary smile.

"It is good to have you home Logan," Ororo whispered so as not to disturb any of the two patients as Logan walked in and took a seat near Jubilee.

"Good ta be back Ro," Logan said with a nod in the weather goddesses' direction. "How're they doing?" Logan asked motioning towards the sleeping figures of Jubilee and Dani.

"Jubilee will have to stay off her left leg for a week or so… she also suffered a slight concussion from her fall from the balcony, but fortunately she will most likely suffer from slight headaches for the next few days at the most. Dani may not be able to use her injured hand for any strenuous activity for at least a month. We may even need to put her through physical therapy," Ororo said with a solemn expression over her face.

"It's that bad?" Logan asked with concern lacing his voice.

Ororo just sighed and nodded. She heard a low growl emanate from Logan and then heard him say as he shook his head, "I shoulda been here Ro… if I'd been here…"

"Logan… please," Ororo reached out to place her hand on top of Logan's in a comforting gesture as she whispered, "you couldn't have known. In fact… none of us could've known. If we had known than we would have made sure that the rest of the team were here as well."

"When are they all coming back anyways?" the feral Canadian asked.

"Well," Ororo started, "I believe Kurt and Kitty are both returning to the mansion sometime today. Charles mentioned he was going to call Piotr and ask him if he could return to the mansion from Russia… you know how he hates being away from his family."

At the mention of the Russian powerhouse, Logan commented, "I still can't believe Magneto let go of the guy." With a snort, he added, "and I sure as hell can't believe he just disbanded his acolytes… just like that," he finished with a snap of his fingers though making sure that he did not wake the two sleeping patients.

Ororo Monroe looked down at the floor and whispered, "Trust me Logan… what Apocalypse made us go through… I think while we were sharing his mind… Magneto saw a lot of what he could become if he followed in the same path he had been following for so very long… and I guess," she paused for a second before saying, "I guess… it scared him. Magneto may be a lot of things but… I don't think… he wants to end up becoming a monster like Apocalypse."

"Chuck still asking him ta join us here?" Logan asked cocking one of his eyebrows.

"Yes of course… we in fact met just a few days ago in Central Park. He still kept rejecting Charles's offer as they played their monthly game of chess… again. But you know how… insistent Charles can be," Ororo let a small smile escape her lips as she said this.

"Well," Logan paused for a second before saying, "I still don't trust him."

Ororo looked up to meet Logan's gaze and said with a straight face, "Logan… you don't trust anybody."

"Not true. I trust ya… and Chuck… and Rogue… and…" Logan was cut off as Ororo Monroe let out a chuckle and held up her hand to stop the Canadian from going on.

Logan let out a chuckle himself as they shared just a few seconds watching the two sleeping figure. Logan couldn't help but smile at the fact that though Dani seemed to be sleeping peacefully… Jubilee on the other hand was snoring slightly. He finally turned to Ororo and asked, "and what about the two lovebirds and Hank… when are they all coming back?"

Ororo smiled slightly before saying, "I think the Professor is going to call Warren and Betsy and ask them to return as soon as they can."

"Well… they are both only in New York, so shouldn't be that hard to get them back here," said Logan with a shrug.

Ororo nodded and then added, "As for Hank… he is still with Nick Fury at their S.H.I.E.L.D. base. I believe he is still working on the project your friend asked him to have a look at… but I think we are going to have to make a call to ask him to come back… in case we have any more incidents such as the one we had tonight."

Logan just nodded in affirmation. Ororo paused for a minute before cautiously asking him, "Logan… how… was your trip?"

She watched as the Canadian man's shoulders slumped a little bit before he brought one of his hands to rub his tired eyes and he finally said, "Didn't find her Ro… looked everywhere I could… but couldn't even find a trace."

"I am truly sorry Logan," Ororo apologised to one of her oldest friends at the Xavier mansion for causing him discomfort by bringing up this subject.

"Not yer fault Ro," Logan responded with a shrug.

"You should get some rest my friend… you seem tired," the weather goddess suggested. When Logan looked up to enquire what she was going to be doing in the mean time, she said, "I'll stay here… in case either Jubilee or Dani wake up and they need anything."

"Tell ya what," Logan suggested as he got up from his seat. "How about ya go to bed in an hour… I'll be back by then to take yer place." Ororo was about to object to this arrangement but Logan just waved it off and added, "come on Ro… it's not like I was gonna get that much sleep tonight anyways."

Ororo finally conceded with a nod as the Canadian parted one final look at the two sleeping patients and then started to head towards the door.

"And Logan," the Wolverine stopped as he was just about to exit the medical bay and turned to see what the weather goddess called him for. "Might I suggest a change in clothes," Ororo said as she scrounged up her nose slightly, "broken leg or not… I do believe our young Miss Lee is likely to smack you with her cast than to have you anywhere near her looking like that… or smelling like that either for that matter."

Logan looked down at himself and frowned at the dried up patches of blood that covered his t-shirt. "Damn shirt was new as well!" Ororo heard him grumble as he headed out of the room and hopefully to the nearest shower.

* * *

Dawn Summers did not know what to think. She chanced a look at her older companion from England and sighed. He was not taking this well… not well at all. 

Once they had left the motel, Giles had insisted on knowing precisely what had taken place back at the mansion… how the fight had actually turned out… and now that he knew… the look on his face was saying just one thing… he shouldn't have asked.

A student at the mansion had been injured badly, a knife through the hand… it seemed that she was going to require at the very least a few months of physical rehabilitation until she was going to be back to a hundred percent again. The girl had been Rahne's roommate. Rahne… Dawn wondered how the young girl was doing… especially since the knife that had struck down this Dani person apparently had been intended for her.

And Jubilee had been wounded as well… a broken leg caused subsequent to being thrown from her second storey balcony by the Bringers… Dawn was really starting to hate these Bringers… probably more than she ever hated Glory. They had no right to barge into a school full of children and attack them. She wondered if Jubilee was feeling as guilty as Giles for what her friends had to go through that very morning.

Giles… he should not feel this way… it was not his fault... but she didn't imagine he was going to listen to anyone no matter how much they tried to let him know that there was nothing he could have done to prevent this from happening. As Scott had explained… they had been lucky that no one had been seriously injured. Dawn understood that was Scott's way of saying… they had been fortunate no one had died.

He had tried his best to reassure the older Englishman by letting him know that the Bringers that had been detained back at the mansion were locked up tighter than Fort Knox… but Giles was having none of it. He had to see for himself where they were. He would not be able to take it if just one of them somehow escaped and cause any sort of damage or harm to anyone else. This was not an area the X-Men were familiar with and therefore he didn't think they knew exactly what kind of danger they were putting themselves in by detaining these creatures rather than just killing them off. Dawn thought that he was most likely already going through scenarios of how he was going to dispose of the Bringers who had been captured and detained at the mansion. The younger Summers from Sunnydale, California did not believe any of those scenarios that were going through the older Englishman's head to have been rated anywhere below R.

"So Dawn," Dawn jumped slightly in her place as she was brought out of her daydream by the attractive redhead in the front passenger seat who had turned around in her seat to speak to her. "I hear you're a Summers as well… think there is a connection to Scott here?" Jean Grey, the X-Men resident telepath and telekinetic asked with somewhat of a playful twinkle in her beautiful emerald orbs.

Dawn watched Scott give her a fleeting look followed by a smile through the rear view mirror as he turned his concentration back to the road. She shrugged in response, "Dunno… but yeah… that would be so totally cool."

Jean winked at the younger girl and alleged, "you know… it will take us less than a few hours to find out if you two are related in anyway back at the mansion… wanna give it a try?"

Dawn was about to nod excitedly but stopped herself and asked, "Umm… what are you going to need for this test?"

"Just a little sample of your blood… we already have Scott's blood work in our data…" Jean was trying to explain but trailed off as she saw the anxious look that crossed the teenager's face. "Dawn… is everything alright?" Jean asked cautiously as even Giles came out of his reverie and turned to look at his younger charge.

"Umm… yeah… I'm fine… it's just that," Dawn turned to Giles for a second and Giles understood exactly what had Dawn so worried about. As far as Dawn was concerned, she had never had to give her blood out to anyone. The only vampire to have ever taken a bite out of her had been dusted by her sister while they were out training one night. And therefore she did not know what her blood tests could end up showing. Yes… this was probably something they should have checked a long time ago, but it was also something that Dawn had always dreaded. She in truth didn't want to know if there was anything peculiar about her blood. "Its… well… I am just a little uncomfortable giving out my blood… its… umm… a needle thing," Dawn knew it was a lame attempt on her part to cover up her real reason but it was the best she could come up with on a short notice.

Jean had watched the many emotions playing out over Dawn's face at the mention of the word blood. She knew that the young girl was hiding something… something to do with her blood. After all… she wouldn't have lied if that hadn't been the case. She was in fact going to let the teenager know that lying to a telepath was just demeaning but she bit back the words. She just forced a smile at the younger Summers and just said, "hey… no biggie," thinking of something quickly she added, "how about a mouth swap… you know… like in that show CSI."

Dawn seemed to ponder this matter over in her head for a second or two before looking towards Giles for confirmation. Unlike herself however, Giles didn't seem to think that there would be anything wrong with Dawn giving them some of her DNA sample and therefore he nodded at the younger Summers in affirmation. Dawn however surprised both him and Jean by saying, "maybe once this whole thing blows over?"

Jean just nodded while Scott spoke up without turning around to face the teenager, "Don't worry Dawn… I doubt we'll find ourselves related… I can't really remember having any uncles from when I was a kid."

"Yeah," Dawn agreed, "me neither."

They were still heading towards the mansion when Giles finally stopped blaming himself… a little bit… which actually was a big improvement from blaming himself for everything and asked the two X-Men in front, "so Scott and Jean…" Jean turned around slightly while Scott regarded the older Englishman with a nod through his rear-view mirror, "how much exactly did the good Professor already inform you off what was going on?"

Scott was the one to answer this time around. "We know that those creatures that the Professor referred to as Bringers were after Jubilee… the Professor would only tell us that she was special… well… extra special if you count the fact that she's a mutant already," Scott paused for a second before saying, "I'm sorry sir but it was very late at the time and we were having to deal with not only locking up the remaining Bringers but also making sure the kids were not scared or anything of the sort… the Professor didn't exactly have time to go into any details."

"Yes… of course," Giles said understandingly.

"The Professor said that he was going to let you explain everything to us once we got everyone back at the mansion," Scott admitted.

"How many others exactly are we going to have to wait for?" asked Giles.

"Altogether?" Scott paused as he did a mental calculation before finally saying, "About six of us are either out of town or out of the country. Most will be back sometime this afternoon… but they all should be back by sometime today in the evening."

"Evening?" Giles asked. "But… we were actually hoping that we would be able to head back to California by sometime tonight."

"We know Sir," Scott said again, "don't worry about it… we'll get you home tonight by midnight… the Professor thought that it would be best if you were around while we discussed exactly how we are going to deal with not only our captives… but in case more of them came back again."

Giles had to agree with the Professor at the way he was handling the situation. As much as he would have liked to have returned to California, he couldn't however in good conscience return without making certain that he had helped the X-Men make all the preparations that they would need in order to avert another attack if it came their way. Resigning himself to the fact that he was probably going to be staying in Bayville for another whole day, he returned his attention to watching the woods as the modified SUV they were in passed the many trees by.

In another ten minutes… he turned in time to see the mansion finally coming into view.

* * *

The soft noise of someone trying to move around brought the Canadian feral mutant who went by the name of Logan… also known as the Wolverine… out of his slumber and into the world of the awakened. His attention immediately turned to the young Asian American girl lying in the bed in the sterile medical bay, next to which he had sat waiting for her to wake up the entire night. They had told him she was going to be fine… but he couldn't help himself from worrying. After all, not everyone had seen exactly how close she had come to loosing her life… twice under just one year. And both times, he had just barely saved her by a hair's breath. 

"Jubes?" Logan asked a little tentatively as sapphire blue eyes groggily opened and regarded him for a few seconds before finally a small smile spread across her face as she whispered in somewhat of a hoarse voice, "Wolvie?"

Logan smiled at the younger girl with fondness at the use of the nickname she had assigned to him as he replied, "Yeah… it's me… how ya feeling darlin'?"

"My leg hurts… kinda," Jubilee admitted. "Is everyone else alright?"

Seeing that the girl's voice was sounding a little hoarse, Logan decided to bring her a cup of water from the water-distiller at the other end of the room. He helped the young girl sit up while telling her not to put too much pressure on the leg. Jubilee did as he asked and drank the water while he answered her previous question. "Dani got nicked outside yer door," when Jubilee looked up with eyes with worry in them Logan quickly reassured her by saying, "she's gonna be fine darlin'… she's just gonna have ta rest fer a while… just like ya gotta take yer rest as well."

He pointed her in the direction of another bed and Jubilee turned her head to see Dani Moonstar, also known as Mirage laying there with a bandage on the top part of her right arm. For someone who was stabbed just a few hours earlier… she actually seemed to be sleeping rather peacefully. She also saw that her own left leg was covered in a cast made of plaster from just below her knee. She thought of how interesting rollerblading was going to be in this condition of hers.

Jubilee swallowed the rest of the water and then Logan helped her lie back down again. Even though her leg was the only thing that was broken, she felt as though her entire body was aching. She decided that maybe that fall had taken a lot more out of her than she had previously thought.

"Darlin'?" Jubilee heard Wolverine call out to her a little cautiously. When she looked up to meet his eyes, she saw the worried expression on his face and couldn't help from feeling a lump rise in her throat. "I spoke ta Monet," Logan started and Jubilee quickly averted her eyes… realising where this conversation was heading. "She told me ya froze when ya saw the intruders… any idea what that was all about?"

Jubilee just shook her head… not willing to burden him with her nightmare.

"Ya sure?" she heard the closest thing she had to a father after the death of her parents ask.

"Sure," she lied… and she knew that he knew she had just lied to him… but she also knew that he was not going to pursue this matter until she was ready to speak to him herself. Logan sighed and she realised that he was doing exactly what she had hoped she would want. As if that wasn't enough, Logan added, "well… just remember that I'm here fer ya darlin'… anything ya wanna talk about… this old canucklehead's gonna be here if ya need him… alright?"

Jubilee beamed up at the man as she said, "I know Wolvie… I know."

They sat there in comfortable silence for just a little while until finally Jubilee broke the silence by calling out to her best friend. "Wolvie?"

"Yeah darlin'?" Wolverine asked.

"Did the Professor tell ya about what's going on?" Jubilee asked a little cautiously. Logan nodded and Jubilee sighed. "Ya know something," Jubilee started again after a slight pause and said, "yesterday… when that old British guy came over with Dawn, the sister of this girl called The Slayer, I didn't want to believe in anything he was talking about ya know," she turned to stare directly into the dark green eyes of the man she had grown a love as a friend and stated, "but he's telling the truth wasn't he? Demons exist and everything."

Logan stared back at the girl for almost ten seconds before finally shaking his head in a nod.

"Ya ever fought any?" asked Jubilee curiously.

"Yeah," Logan grunted in response. "Mostly killed a lot of vamps… they are easy to pick out in bars and crowds… got a death smell ta them."

"Ya ever met Dracula?" Jubilee prodded and even though it had been a serious question Logan actually let out a chuckle.

"Darlin'," Logan stated, "the guy's a myth… he ain't real."

"Ya sure," Jubilee asked quirking her eyebrow as if wanting proof.

"Yeah… pretty much," Logan stated confidently. Jubilee even though couldn't quite get herself to believe it completely… but for now, she was content in knowing that her Wolvie had said Dracula didn't exist, which meant he didn't exist. At least that was one thing she wouldn't have to worry about.

Jubilee nodded as best as she could to let her best friend know she believed him. She leaned her head back against the bed and simply stared at the far corner of the room. As she stared straight ahead, her face started to show signs of being in deep thought. Logan wished he knew what the young girl was thinking about… it was actually one of the only times he became overly concerned about her. Jubilee thinking deep thoughts was definitely bad in his books. In his opinion she was too young to think about things too deeply. Her mind should only be concerned about how much of the Professor's cash she was going to spend the next time she went to the mall and what she would want to buy.

He knew that even though she looked extremely carefree most of the time, there was a deep and thoughtful side to her that she rarely shared with anyone else. And he couldn't stop himself from feeling a little proud at the fact that she was comfortable in sharing that side with him.

"What ya thinking about Jubes?" Logan asked bringing the girl out of her musings.

Jubilee tried to shrug but winched slightly as her body was still aching. "Nothing. Just… life and stuff."

"Anything about it ya want ta fix… let me know and I'll fix it fer ya," Logan stated with a slight smirk which brought him a smile in return.

"Can't fix life Wolvie," Jubilee stated a little sadly as she turned to stare at the wall again.

"Sure I can," Logan replied without missing a beat. "Can't be that harder than fixing my Harley."

This time, Jubilee laughed out loud.

After she had composed herself, she turned to see a smiling Logan looking at her and said, "I'm gonna go back to Sunnydale with the British guy Wolvie."

The Canadian feral mutant stopped smiling. He just stared at the girl, as if asking her if he had just heard right with his enhanced hearing. "What was that Jubes?"

Jubilee swallowed the lump in her throat as she realised that Logan might actually get angry with her for the first time in her life. But she had to do this. She couldn't even remember what those things that attacked the mansion last night were, all she remembered was that Giles had called her a Potential which meant these things will keep on coming at her until they finally got to her. Surprisingly, she wasn't much worried about that. What she was worried about was the fact that they would not stop at anything to get to her. Even if it meant going through each and every one of her friends at the X-Mansion.

Dani was already hurt… and she couldn't even start to imagine who else could get hurt if they came back. Gambit, Ororo, the Professor, Bobby, Samuel, Ray… heck, she was even worried about Monet getting hurt even though she never got along with Ms Perfect. She was worried about Logan most of all though. She knew very well that his regenerative powers made him nearly immortal but still, she didn't want to find out how far his healing factors would stretch. And she knew that he would be more than willing to go the distance if it meant protecting her.

"I'm going back to Sunnydale…" she started but was immediately cut off by a growling Wolverine.

"Ya ain't going nowhere," Logan snapped as he stood up from his seat and loomed over the girl who just shook her head stubbornly.

"N-no," Jubilee couldn't stop herself from stuttering out. Logan realising that he was actually scaring the young girl backed away immediately and apologised.

"Sorry Jubes… didn't meant ta snap at ya," Logan said. "But I meant what I said," he stated after a pause, "I ain't letting ya get outta my sight until this whole thing passes over."

"Wolvie… I need ta go from here… those things are gonna come back Wolvie… and I don't want anyone else to get hurt again," Jubilee said on the verge of tears.

Logan didn't know what to do. The last time he has seen Jubilee cry was when her parents had died. She usually put up a very brave front but he knew that she was also very insecure about things… but mostly she was insecure about loosing her new found family. As he looked at a single tear that ran down the girl's cheek, he rushed forward and wiped it away. She in turn simply leaned forward and wrapped her arms around him.

"Please Wolvie… this is something I gotta do… I don't want anyone else ta get hurt on my account," Jubilee cried out pleadingly.

Logan just stayed quiet. He knew what he would do in a situation like this. Whenever he knew his arch-nemeses Sabretooth was around, he would get away from the mansion in order to draw him away from the kids and everyone else living here. Jubilee was trying to follow his example. But he couldn't let her do this. She didn't have his regenerative powers. He didn't know why but the thought of something happening to the young girl in his arms made something, somewhere in the back of his mind scream out in rage, anger… and loss. It had been like this ever since she had first arrived at the mansion to stay. It was almost as though there was a connection he had with the girl he just couldn't place.

"Wolvie?" Jubilee pulled away from the man to look up at dark green eyes looking back at her. She wanted an answer… but Logan just stared at her. She was not going to get an answer. "Wolvie?" Jubilee asked again.

* * *

Ororo Monroe was on her way down to the infirmary to check on their two patients and the man watching over them when the sounds of the front door opening made her stop and turn her head in the said direction to see who it was. 

She caught the sight of Scott and Jean walking in with Giles and Dawn following close behind. She smiled at the duo from Sunnydale as she walked over to greet them, "Good Morning Giles… Dawn… how are you both doing today?"

Dawn just said, "Sleepy," to which Ororo let out a slight smile. Giles in turn however just shrugged and said, "I wish we had returned under better circumstances."

Ororo forced out a smile at this comment. She could only guess how horrible the Englishman was feeling after he had promised that Jubilee would be safest here at the mansion. She didn't quite know how to comfort the man and therefore simply added, "The Professor is waiting for you in his office." She turned to the two X-Men, Scott and Jean and added, "You should take them to the Professor's office," to which both Scott and Jean simply nodded.

Ororo smiled once again at the duo and was about to walk off when Jean stopped her, "Ororo, wait." When the weather goddess turned to face Jean, she saw the telltale signs of concentration on the redhead's face and realised she was communicating telepathically… most probably with the Professor. She turned to face Ororo and said, "Apparently Jubilee is up and is being brought upstairs by Logan… he wants us to go rendezvous in his office."

Ororo nodded but said, "Tell Charles that I will be downstairs checking on Dani… I will be up shortly."

Jean nodded and then headed towards the Professor's office followed by Scott and the duo from Sunnydale.

When they reached the door to the Professor's office, Scott raised his hand to knock on the door… however, before he could knock on the door once, the cultured English accented voice of Professor Charles Francis Xavier floated out from within the door as he asked for all of them to enter. Giles and Dawn shared a look, they didn't believe they were ever going to get used to that.

They entered the office room to find the Professor sipping a cup of tea. "Ah… Good morning Rupert, just the person I had been waiting to speak to," greeted Professor Xavier from behind the desk with a tired smile. He picked up his cup of tea and raised it to gain the attention of the older Englishman and asked, "Could I offer you some tea?"

Giles had expected the Professor to be slightly hostile towards the older Englishman. He had almost wished that Dawn would've gone down into the infirmary with Miss Monroe to see Jubilee upon arrival. He had not wanted her to be around if things escalated between the two men… she did not need to hear one adult complaining about how the other one had brought something like this into the lives of his children while the other one would argue that there was nothing he could have done to prevent it.

But now that he took in the calm and collected expression that was donning the Professor's face, he realised that there was not going to be anything to shout at each other about. There was simply going to be two elderly men, both of whom shouldered the weight of the world on each of their respective shoulders in their own little way, sitting around in an elegantly decorated office, sipping tea and considering what their next options were going to be. Giles realised that if he had known about Charles Xavier twenty years ago, he would have recommended him to the Watcher's Council… and what a fine Watcher he would have made indeed.

"Rupert?" Giles heard the man behind the desk calling him out of his musings.

Gathering his thoughts quickly, he took his place opposite to the Professor. "Tea will be fine… thank you," Giles said with somewhat of a forced smile. Forced because he still could not stop blaming himself for what happened to the two children who never deserved any of it.

But before the Professor poured him his cup of tea, he turned to the young Dawn Summers and sent a telepathic message. "Hello Dawn," Dawn actually jumped in her place startled at the voice in her head as she heard the Professor say, "Forgive me Dawn… I did not mean to startle you."

"Jesus Christ!" Dawn telepathically sent back. "Professor," she said telepathically, one of her hand resting on her chest trying to stop her heart from pounding its way out of her chest, "not this early in the morning please… I'm still in the process of waking up completely."

Professor Charles Xavier had the decency to look a little embarrassed and apologetic at the same time. He had become accustomed to speaking to all the students at the institute telepathically at any given time that he had forgotten that most others are not used to suddenly having a voice in their head.

"Dawn… are you alright?" Giles, not knowing that Dawn had just been having a telepathic conversation with Professor Xavier asked a little concernedly as he watched her taking in a few long breaths trying to get her breathing under control.

Dawn just nodded her head and said, "Yeah… I'm fine Giles... no need for you to worry."

Giles wanted to shrug it off as something teenage related he would never understand but decided to ask just to be sure, "Are you certain?"

Dawn finally brought her breathing under control and smiled at her guardian reassuringly and said, "I'm fine Giles… trust me."

Giles just nodded with a smile of his own.

As Professor Xavier poured him a cup, he looked up in the direction of his two eldest X-Men standing just a few feet inside the room and said, "Rupert… I believe you've met two of my most senior students?"

"Ah," Rupert Giles said not missing the enormous amount of pride that was behind the Professor's voice as he spoke about his two young protégées. "Yes… I certainly have." He turned to regard the two X-Men with a smile, and this time it wasn't forced as the Professor's admiration and love for his two students was almost infectious.

The Professor looked at his two X-Men as Jean took her seat on one corner and Scott just leaned back against the wall beside her.

"By the way," the Professor asked, "have you both had breakfast?"

In answer to his question Dawn's stomach growled out loud embarrassing the young girl as she blushed profusely and tried to look away from everyone by staring at the floor and trying to hide herself from everyone's gaze only to end up drawing all the attention to herself. "Sorry," Dawn mumbled out apologetically while inwardly cursing her traitorous stomach.

"We didn't exactly get the time," admitted Giles trying to hide the tight smile that had formed at the outburst of Dawn's stomach.

"Scott, Jean," Professor said as Jean stood up from her chair, "why don't you both go grab breakfast as well, and take Dawn with you… I'm sure our young friend could use some." He finished giving a quick glance at the girl seated opposite to him as she looked away, still a little embarrassed.

"Sure Professor," Scott replied as he smiled at Dawn who just got up silently and followed the two out of the office.

"How about you Rupert?" Professor Xavier asked the former Watcher. "I could have something brought in here for you."

"Perhaps… later," responded Giles with a tired sigh. His shoulders slumped slightly in regret as he spoke up, "Charles, I am… I am exceptionally sorry about what happened here last night… I swear to you I had not the slightest idea…"

He was stopped in mid-ranting as the Professor just shook his head and raised a hand to stop the Englishman from going any further. "Rupert… I do not blame you at all… in truth… I'm rather happy about the fact that we had the opportunity to meet up yesterday." When Giles gave the man a quizzical look, the Professor stated, "If it wasn't for the information you gave us yesterday… we would never have known what these Bringers were here for and well… I shudder to imagine what would have happened."

Giles nodded in agreement. "How are the students fairing?" he asked after a little time.

"Some of them are a little shaken… especially the young ones," the Professor responded. "It is never easy to see your home being attacked by outside forces. As you have already heard, there were only two injuries… nothing that would not heal in time however," he added.

"I'm sorry there were any injuries to begin with," Giles said regretfully.

"There are always going to be injuries whether we like it or not," Professor Xavier added to alleviate the Englishman's mood. "Sometimes it will occur during a fight like the one we had last night, sometimes it would be during one of our training routines, and sometimes, it will simply happen while having fun." The Professor took a sip of his tea before saying, "And the only reason they were able to inflict any form of injury on any of my students was because they had the element of surprise on their hand… once they lost that advantage however… we were able to subdue them somewhat easily."

Giles put the cup of tea back on the table and said, "Charles… I am however somewhat concerned about the fact that you are actually holding some of the Bringers captive." Before Professor Xavier could respond to that Giles quickly added, "I understand that you are confident that your holding facilities will hold them… but… with all due respect Professor… science and mysticism has never actually been the best of friends."

Professor Xavier nodded in agreement. "Yes… I do realise that." He then added, "I guess it is a good thing then that I have two of my most experienced X-Men watching over the containment area at the moment."

Giles was pleased to hear that. He was going to rest a little easily knowing there were actual eyes watching over the Bringers. He never was big on relying on technology when it came to holding dangerous mystical creatures… no matter how advanced it was. He was never that big on technology period.

The Professor, sensing that Giles was trying to assure himself that the Bringers were not going to cause any problems was about to reassure the older Englishman when he heard someone knocking on the door. He actually seemed a little surprised as he hadn't sensed anyone approaching the door.

"Come in," the Professor called out as Giles turned to see a short but gruff looking man open the door, give Giles a once-over and then turn to push in a wheelchair carrying Jubilee in it.

Giles looked at the girl with her leg in a cast and immediately stood up and started towards the girl to greet the girl as well as to let her know exactly how much he regretted the fact that she had been injured. However, before he could take more than a step in the girl's direction, he heard the distinct sound of something growling that made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up straight. Before he could decide where the growl was coming from, he heard the Professor say, "That is enough Logan."

Giles immediately turned his attention at the man who had wheeled Jubilee in and realised that the growling had been coming from him. And as his eyes met the eyes of the feral mutant's, he suddenly felt his mouth going dry. He knew he was looking into the eyes of a man… yet… there was something in this particular man's eyes that reminded him of a great big beast just waiting to pounce. He realised that even Angelus had never made him this nervous. Spike didn't count because as big a threat as he was… in Giles's book… he fell more under the category of annoying Master Vampire rather than an intimidating one.

"Logan," another warning came from the Professor followed by Jubilee placing a hand on the feral looking man's hand and calling out to him as, "Wolvie," and finally… the man's gaze turned non-threatening. Giles watched with interest as the man's eyes turned from dark brown… at least that's what they had seemed like to him… to a darker shade of green.

Before anyone could say anything, Logan asked the British man, "Yer Rupert Giles?"

It took Giles a second or two to respond as he tried to stop his heart from racing. And from the look he was getting from the man… it was almost as though the man knew exactly what he was going through. And even though the man had dropped his threatening presence, Giles still felt somewhat intimidated.

"Umm," he started, "yes… I am." He finally pushed his fight-or-flight urges deep inside his psyche and came forward to shake the man's hand. Logan just gave the extended hand a look and then looked up to meet the man's eyes again. Giles lowered his hand realising that the man had no intention of shaking his hand. The man then looked over the Englishman's shoulders to look at the Professor who had somewhat of a disappointed look on his face because of Logan's attitude towards the older Englishman and said, "Jubilee's got something ta say," he said as he turned around to walk out. "Maybe ya can change her mind," he added. As he was heading out he paused at the doorway for a second looking back at Jubilee and then casting a glance at the Professor over his shoulder and simply said, "and Chuck… call Fury and tell him to send in the clean-up crew." With that he stalked out of the room.

The Professor had always had a bit of a hard time reading Logan's thoughts because of his training from Weapon X and therefore did not really know what was grating on his nerves that very moment. A look at Jubilee who was staring longingly at the empty hallway where Logan had just been standing just moments ago… confirmed to him that whatever Jubilee had wanted to come up to talk to the Professor about had probably been the reason for Logan's hostile attitude at the moment.

Jubilee turned to face the Professor but before she could say anything the Professor wheeled up to her and asked, "Jubilation, you should have stayed in bed… how are you feeling my dear?"

Jubilee just shrugged and said, "alright I guess." She turned to Giles who was standing to a side and said, "Hiya queue-jumper… how ya been?"

Giles couldn't stop himself from smiling a little as he replied with a "fine, thank you for asking". But then both Professor Charles Xavier and Rupert Giles saw the expression of seriousness that came over the young Chinese American girl's face as they heard her say, "Professor… I uh," she paused for a second as the expression of seriousness changed into determination and she looked straight at the Professor and said, "I've got something I wanted ta talk to ya about."

The Professor just nodded and asked for Jubilee to continue.

Jubilee licked her lips as they suddenly became dry in anticipation of how the Professor was going to react to her decision. Knowing there was really no easy way for her to find out than to let him hear her decision, she squared her jaw and started.

"I've… I've decided to go back to Sunnydale with umm…," he looked at Giles and continued, "him and Dawn."

The Professor hadn't however expected this. "Jubilee… why?" was all the Professor could ask in response.

Jubilee saw how the Professor's eyebrows had knitted together in concern and she couldn't help herself for feeling a little bad about putting the man through this as he had given her so much since her parents had passed away… and again… this was all the more reason for her to take the danger that was meant for her away from these people who loved her so very much.

"I… I just don't want anyone else to get hurt because of me," Jubilee admitted.

"Jubilee," the Professor said wheeling closer and taking the girl's small hands in his, "no one… is going to get hurt." When Jubilee looked as though she was about to protest the Professor added, "we will increase security on mansion grounds… now that Logan has come back we will even have him and a few others patrol the grounds after dark… we will even appoint a few more of the senior staff on monitor duty."

When Jubilee just shook her head stubbornly the Professor signed. It would be so easy to change her mind… and then he admonished himself for even thinking the thought. He had long ago swore to himself that he would never invade the sanctity of someone's mind without their permission… however… during situations such as this… it was very hard to abide by that oath. But perhaps… there was a way he could work around it.

"There is nothing I can say that will change your mind?" the Professor asked finally after waiting a few seconds to see if Jubilee was going to change her mind. But her face remained that of determination. The Professor let out a defeated sigh… and nodded. "Very well," he said, "however… if you do wish to leave for Sunnydale with Rupert and Dawn… there is something you must do."

Jubilee looked up and frowned. What was it that she could do? She wondered.

"Take some of the X-Men with you," the Professor added… and waited for the barrage of protests to begin. He was not disappointed.

"Excuse me," Rupert Giles, former Librarian and Watcher, who had until now simply stood to one side feeling a little uncomfortable at the scene playing out in front of him as it seemed like a very private conversation between a mentor and his charge finally asked as if he was not sure if he had heard it right.

Jubilee on the other hand… was a lot less subtle. "Say what now?" she asked.

"Take some of the X-Men with you," the Professor repeated… and his tone and voice made certain that he was not to be deferred from this decision. However… it came none the less.

"Charles," Giles started, "I really would appreciate it if the X-Men stayed out of this conflict… bringing them into this would just complicate matters further."

"Or simplify things," the Professor suggested coolly.

"Oh come on," it was Jubilee's turn to protest, "What's the use of me going to Sunnydale just to have ya follow me there."

"Then I guess there is no need for you to go in the middle of a battle zone," The Professor simply added with a shrug. When it seemed as though both Giles and Jubilee were about to protest the Professor just held out a hand and said first to Jubilee, "Jubilee… I realise that you are trying to protect us from harm by taking the 'danger' away with you… however what you must also realise that I am not going to let you go anywhere by yourself." When Jubilee looked as though she was about to protest again the Professor for once used a stern expression on the girl which made her clamp up immediately. "And the X-Men I will be selecting to go with you will not only be there for your own protection but to protect these other potentials as well."

He then turned his attention to Giles who looked as though he was about to protest, object, complain, and everything else along that line. And the good professor simply ignored this and went on, "as for you not wanting my X-Men to be involved, are you telling me that you do not want Buffy Summers, Dawn's older sister to have some allies who are actually powerful enough to aid her in her quest." Giles opened his mouth to retort… but couldn't. The Professor simply continued, "and as for once again coming back to the topic of you not wanting my X-Men involved… well… the very fate of the entire world is at stake here… consider us already involved."

And that was that. Giles for once couldn't find a way to counter the argument. He opened his mouth to say something… anything but couldn't find the words. "The very fate of the entire world is at stake here… consider us already involved." The Professor's words kept ringing through his ears. How true it was indeed.

"Now if you both will excuse me… I have some work that I need to finish." With that the Professor dismissed the two and wheeled himself behind the desk. "Jubilee… I suggest you get some breakfast and take our guest along with you… I will call a meeting with the rest of the team and decide on who should accompany you back to Sunnydale," with that he turned his attention to some papers on his desk.

As Giles and Jubilee stepped out of the office… the only think Jubilee could think off was 'now how the heck did that happen?'

Giles on the other hand was thinking about how he had not been sent out of the Principals office in more than thirty-five years… and it was definitely an experience he never wanted to repeat.

"Ya know… this is yer entire fault," Jubilee voiced with a frown to the older Englishman. Giles on the other hand was too busy trying to compare the last time he had been sent out of a principal's office and the way Charles Xavier had sent him out and unconsciously said, "Yes… I know."

"Damn right," Jubilee added folding her arms in front of herself.

"Right," mumbled Giles again as he wondered off in the direction of the kitchen. It was after he had taken a few steps that he realised he didn't know where the kitchen was and turned to see Jubilee looking at him with a quirked eyebrow and tapping her fingers on the arms of her wheelchair. "I… don't think I know where the kitchen is," Giles said somewhat sheepishly.

Jubilee just gestured for him to follow her in the opposite direction. They entered the kitchen to find Dawn already there sitting around with Scott, Jean, and a few more of the new mutants such as Tabitha, Bobby, Samuel and Amara. Dawn looked up to see the look on Giles's face and frowned in concern.

"Giles," Dawn asked a little tentatively, "is everything alright?"

Even Scott and Jean looked up at the older Englishman. Giles simply looked at them all in turn and said, "Yes… I think everything is alright indeed." He smiled a little at the New Mutants who smiled back at him before settling back into their conversation.

Before Dawn could ask him what kind of answer was that… they heard the sounds of someone walking by the kitchen door and all turned in time to see and let out selective gasps at the sight of the now blood covered feral looking mutant Wolverine.

"Logan? Is everything…" Scott, field leader of the X-men immediately got up from his chair to ask the feral mutant what had happened.

Logan just growled out not wanting to answer any questions with a look that was enough to get Scott to back up from the Canadian as he simply walked past the kitchen and towards his quarters.

"Umm… what was that all about?" Dawn asked with a slight quiver in her voice as the look in the man's eyes had been anything but human. Scott and Jean looked at each other and before they could voice their thoughts… a frantic and near panic-stricken Cajun former thief from New Orleans stumbled into the room, looked at Scott and said, "Cyke… Let de kids know dat de Danger Room be off-limits t' fo' the entire week… no one's t' go in dere… k?"

With that… Gambit ran out of the room and towards the Professor's office. Jean and Scott shared another look with each other before running out the kitchen following in the footsteps of the Cajun charmer followed of course by Giles and Dawn as well as the New Mutants who were present. They rushed the Office just in time to see the somewhat pale faced Professor Xavier saying, "So this is why he had asked me to call up Fury and ask him to send over the clean up crew."

"Professor what happened?" Scott asked concerned.

The Professor simply looked at his oldest student and just said, "Scott… just make certain that none of the children go down to the Danger Room or the Danger Room control booth… Wolverine just paid a visit to our captives from last night… I… need to make a call…" He trailed off as he reached for his phone.

Even though Giles and Dawn could guess what had happened to the Bringers… they also saw that the New Mutants were looking to the adults with questioning stares. Scott and Jean however had grown up with Logan as their mentor and knew how temperamental the feral Canadian could be at times. They ushered the New Mutants out of the office who threw questions around wanting to know what was going on even though some of them bore expressions which said they already knew what had happened but would like to be confirmed none the less.

Giles saw Jean walk back into the room and ask Gambit making certain that her voice was low, "How bad is it?"

Gambit in turn just looked back at the redhead and said, "Gambit don never wants t' be on dat man's bad side."

The Professor finished the call and wheeled himself out from behind his desk and headed towards the doorway as everyone parted ways. "Scott… Gambit… you both are with me." He paused at the door and turned to ask the older Englishman Rupert Giles, "Rupert… perhaps you could come as well."

"Of course," Giles said immediately. He in truth did not really care what had happened to the Bringers… but he was however curious to see what exactly the dangerous looking man had been able to accomplish. However, as he would soon find out… some questions are better left unanswered.

The Professor turned to Gambit and asked, "Gambit… where is Rogue… I thought she was watching over the containment area with you."

"Umm," Gambit stumbled slightly, "she be too busy thr'wing up… maybe she be alr'ght by de t'me we go down dere." His voice however was more of someone trying to reassure themselves than anything else. The Professor in turn just nodded as he wheeled out followed by Scott, Gambit and Giles.

Dawn was about to follow but Jean held her back. When Dawn looked as though she was about to protest, Jean said, "Dawn, I would be down there myself but right now… I need to stay up here and make sure none of the children go down there. So… are you going to help me?"

Dawn thought about it and nodded. Making sure none of the younger teens like Rahne, Jamie, or those twins she met yesterday went down to wherever this Danger Room was definitely more important than looking at the bodies of dead Bringers. Just like the people who followed Professor Xavier to the Danger Room… Jean and Dawn went to work getting the older and more responsible teens such as Samuel and Monet… whom Dawn met for the first time… to get the children to stay away from the lower levels of the mansion… especially the Danger Room.

* * *

It was well past noon when a cab pulled up in front of the mansion and a girl with brown hair and hazel eyes of about eighteen got out from the back. 

"Alright already," the girl said, annoyance seeping through her voice, "we may be a little different but we save the world like, every other day you know."

"Pay up," the taxi driver snapped. "Times a wasting."

The girl looked at the cab driver and wondered what had crawled up his butt. What she didn't know at the time… and would most probably not ever know was the fact that this same taxi driver had had to drop of two people from Sunnydale the previous night at the same address and that he really… really didn't like mutants. The girl paid the driver the fare and went to the back to get her luggage. As soon as she pulled out her somewhat large luggage, which was kind of strange since she had only gone to spend the weekend with her parents… the taxi driver pulled away screaming one last time out of his window at the girl, "MUTIE FREAKS!"

Not to be outdone, the girl pumped her fists high in the air and said, "OH YEAH… WELL… YOU LIKE STINK." She grumbled "Jerk," through gritted teeth as she finally turned and stared at the Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters in the distance. A smile swept across her face as she mumbled the words, "Home Sweet Home."

With that Katherine Pryde of the X-Men phased through the large front gates of the mansion while pulling her luggage behind her.

She was however just the first to arrive back at the mansion that day as one by one, Kurt 'Nightcrawler' Wagner, Warren 'The Angel' Worthington III and last but not least, Elisabeth 'Betsy' Braddock came back to their lives at the mansion.

* * *

It was another few hours before most of the senior members of the X-Men found themselves in the Professor's office which was somewhat crowded at that moment. In the middle of the room and opposite to the Professor sat the Sunnydale residents Giles and Dawn. To the side sat the person at the centre of it all… Jubilation Lee. To the Professor's left sat in one chair Elizabeth Braddock, the purple haired English telepath who had arrived at the mansion a few months previously to get some help with her telepathic powers which had been growing for some time. Beside her sat her good friend, the X-Men's resident telepath and telekinetic Jean Grey… who has yet to pick a code name for herself. To the Professor's right sat the beautiful Ororo Monroe. 

Around the room standing in various positions were the rest of the team which consisted of Nightcrawler, Angel, Cyclops, Wolverine, Kitty, Gambit and Rogue.

Giles for his part was trying very hard not to stare… especially at the two mutants whom the Professor had introduced as Nightcrawler and Angel. It was hard not to. After all… in his very long life he had never come across two people whose outward appearances literally made someone think of the Angel and the Devil. Dawn for her part was not even trying to hide the fact that she was staring at Warren Kenneth Worthington III. This unknown to her was making a certain British telepath a little peeved.

Giles was also trying very hard to ignore the piercing stare the feral Canadian mutant was giving him. He had seen first hand what the man had done to the few bringers that had been held captive. And he for one obviously agreed with the Cajun ex-thief wholeheartedly. He DID NOT want to be on that man's bad side.

They had all been called into the office once they had arrived and had all been told about Jubilee's new… situation. Kitty had so far been the only one to have thought the entire thing to be a hoax. Though not overly religious… Kitty had been brought up under the Jewish faith and right that moment the very beliefs she had grown up with were being challenged… Hell existed… and she was having a very hard time getting her head around that notion.

Kurt and Gambit for their part had seen more than their share of weird things before coming to live at Xavier's mansion to know when to keep an open mind. And Wolverine for his part had always hated demons… he didn't know why but he had always thought that it probably had something to do with the life he had forgotten. Betsy for one had known about Mysticism for a long time. After all… her brother who the world had started to know as Captain Britain was somewhat of a mystical warrior by his own right. Rogue had absorbed enough of Logan and Gambit over time to have glimpsed into some of their memories to know that demons and vampires existed. Angel for his part had actually heard about magic and demons from his girlfriend Betsy… and even though there were things he was not entirely willing to accept… but he was not however wishing to voice his opinions at the moment. Ororo for her part… growing up in Africa she had seen more than her share of demons, shamans and the likes.

"As you have all heard," the Professor finally spoke up, "I am sending some of you to Sunnydale with Jubilee, Rupert and Giles, to help out in any way possible with this ongoing war."

Most of them nodded… Kitty a little hesitantly than the others. The Professor turned to Giles, "Rupert… you have told us everything we need to know about these creatures that you have to deal with. Listening to what you have said about some of the weaknesses of these creatures as well as weaknesses in your own defences… I have selected certain of my X-Men to follow you back to Sunnydale." When Giles nodded the Professor continued. "Each of my X-Men whom I have chosen has been chosen so with their particular gifts in mind and how they could best contribute to the team."

"I understand," Giles said in approval of the Professor's plan.

"There is just one thing that I will need your word on however," the Professor said as Giles tilted his head slightly and then nodded his head for the Professor to continue. "Now I realise that Buffy and you yourself are going to be in charge of most of the major decisions… I would however like to ask you to allow some of my X-Men to contribute to the decisions as well."

"Of course," Giles nodded immediately. He knew that it was going to be a little hard for Buffy to allow other people to make decisions sometimes, as she had the habit of always being in charge… but he hoped that his surrogate daughter would come to accept any and all forms of help from the X-Men who were going back to Sunnydale with them to help in a war they could very well have ignored.

"Now are you certain the Summers resident will hold all of my X-Men as well as these potential slayers?" Professor asked. Even though he didn't mean to sound like a snob, but the fact was that he was very much a realist at times. And he knew that not everyone had mansions as large as his to hold that many people.

"Please do not concern yourself about living arrangements… I can get us to move as much of our belongings as we could along with the rest of the potentials to a mansion of an ally of ours as soon as we reach Sunnydale," Giles stated as he had already thought of such basic arrangements that were going to be needed if some of the X-Men were to stay with them as well. The Professor nodded in approval.

"Well then… now that we have that out of the way," the Professor said with a smile as he looked around the room at his X-Men before finally looking back at Giles and starting, "though most of my X-Men have volunteered to go to Sunnydale with you… I have chosen just a select few. I of course cannot leave the mansion and the children here unguarded as well." Giles nodded again along with a few of the members of the X-Men. The Professor paused for a second before finally stating, "The members of my X-Men I've chosen to accompany you to Sunnydale are…"

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To Be Continued…

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**Author's Notes**

Ok… firstly extremely sorry for the late update. Not only has life been busy but I kept having second thoughts about how this particular chapter should proceed. The word file you guys are reading is actually saved on my computer as X-Men BTVS Marvel Story 1 Chapter 6f. Yes people… notice that f at the end. There was an 'a', a 'b', a 'c', 'd' and an 'e'. That's how many versions of this chapter I had to write. I think number'd' went somewhere around 16000 words but in the end didn't pan out the way I wanted it to. In my opinion, this was probably one of the most important Chapters of the story… and I'll honestly tell you that I think I should have worked on an 'g' or maybe even an 'h' before finally posting this one. I may even edit this chapter somewhere down the line to make it a little better. I just hope you all like it enough to not throw rotten eggs at me. He-he.

Anyways… I know some of you hate cliff-hangers but I couldn't reveal who was going to go back to Sunnydale… yet. Don't worry… everything will be revealed in the next chapter as certain members of the X-Men plus Dawn and Giles head back to Sunny-Hell. Can anyone guess who they are going to be and exactly why they had been chosen? Well… give it a thought. Don't expect me to tell you in my review responses but I personally can't wait to see how many of you get it on the mark.

Well… that's it for now folks… do send in your reviews. Every review I get makes me want to work on this story even more. Heck… for the 21 reviews (Yay!) I got for this chapter… I must have spent at least 1 hour in front of my computer each and every day trying to write up a better chapter. Take care of yourselves and stay safe all.

Before you go however… remember to press that Review Button at the bottom-left left. (In a sing-song voice) Reviews Reviews Reviews… Reviews… make a fan-fiction author's world go round. (Yes… I'm a 25 year old man who actually has a Powerpuff Girl song stuck in his head… and you know something… I love it… lol).


	7. Welcome to the Hellmouth!

**DISCLAIMER** – The characters of Angel and Buffy the Vampire Slayer belong to Joss Whedon, the WB, UPN, Mutant Enemy, Twentieth Century Fox and others whom I don't know about. The characters of X-Men Evolution are owned by Marvel. I am not in any way affiliated with any of the groups or organizations that hold rights over the characters of Angel or Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or X-Men Evolution and neither have I been authorized to write the following story. This is a non-profit fan based effort and no copyright infringement is intended. So, umm… please don't sue.

The plotline this story follows however is completely mine and therefore I would appreciate it if you would kindly let me know before using any aspect of this story. Also… if you want to archive it… please just drop me a message.

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**Chapter 7: Welcome... to the Hellmouth**

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It was in the middle of a clearing in the woods of Sunnydale where two figures were waiting patiently for a certain assemblage of heroes plus their own friends to arrive. One of the two figures was that of a slightly overweight man in his early twenties with a boyish appearance wearing loose fitting clothes. The other was of a petite but stunningly beautiful young blond woman also in her early twenties.

Though from their outward appearances most individuals would perhaps dismiss them upon notice as their average young adults fresh out of college. However, they would be very wrong indeed. Because these two may look normal to most people, but the lives they led were anything but ordinary.

The man's name was Alexander Harris, but most knew of him as Xander. He was a carpenter… a man who was still trying to find his way in the world… but what he may never know was the fact that the world had already assigned him with one of the greatest of roles. The role of a hero. No, he does not have special powers or abilities, and his fighting skills were not the most remarkable of all. But where he lacked in these areas… he made up for it in heart. And he had an abundance amount of that at hand. Something the Scoobies, his family if only not by blood could never have existed without.

The woman standing beside him however was no stranger to being a hero. The World chose her as well… or rather fate did. As the one hero who will stand up against the vampires and demons and such. The Slayer. While Xander had accepted his role as one of the heroes the world will never know of, Buffy Anne Summers had been chosen specifically to fill out the space of Hero. Something she had more than once tried to walk away from… to try and have a normal life. But unfortunately no matter how many times she tried going down that road, fate kept hounding her until she went back to her role as a hero.

The question one had to wonder was whether that made Xander the better hero or just the lucky one.

"So," Xander started. "The X-Men are coming to town."

He turned his head slightly to regard his best friend who was also looking up at the moonlight sky as well. He watched as she gave thought to what he had just said and finally but very slowly, nodded.

"And you don't seem that excited over this why?" Xander asked curiously.

In answer to his question, Buffy just shrugged. Now… Xander Harris had known Buffy Anne Summers for nearly the past seven years. They had been the best of friends and confidants. They had the kind of bond most people would be envious of. And this was the reason why he could tell that something was definitely bothering his best friend. And that it had to do with a certain group of costumed individuals coming to town to help her save the world. Now if he had to wait for Buffy to actually tell him what was going on, well… lets just say that he would have to wait till he was as old as Angel, Buffy's former boyfriend, former scourge of Europe, former a lot of other things he probably didn't even want or care to know about. And to be that old he would need to be turned by a vampire… an experience he most surely was not willing to go through. So he took the only course of action he knew would get her to speak up.

"Alright Buff," he said turning to the Slayer, "spill."

"Spill what?" Buffy asked frowning slightly while also avoiding his gaze. Now Xander knew for sure something was bothering her.

"Spill what." Xander repeated the words a little exasperatedly and then continued, "Buffy… ever since Giles called us to let us know that the X-Men themselves were gonna come down here and help us kick the First Evil's butt… you've been kinda… I dunno… like you're thinking too much or something." He paused for a second before adding in a mock reprimanding manner, "and you know how thinking can be bad for your brain."

"Right… thinking bad," Buffy responded almost absentmindedly. "Hurts head."

Xander let out a heavy sigh. "Buffy," this time when he called out her name, she turned to regard him as she noticed not his usual playful tone but rather a sincere one. "What's up?"

Buffy sighed and looked at the ground briefly before looking back at her best friend and asking, "What's Giles thinking?" Xander just cocked his head in confusion as Buffy explained. "Bringing outsiders in on our fight. I mean, I already have to worry about the girls I'm protecting and now I have to look out for these guys as well."

Xander just raised an eyebrow. "Buffy… you know that's not the reason you're bothered. The X-Men can take care of their own… we both know it Buffster. So why don't you quit making stuff up and just tell me what's really bothering you."

Buffy simply stared back at Xander for what seemed like an eternity as he himself stared back… not backing down at the least. She sighed again. She turned and stared into the moonlight sky and at the few visible stars for a few moments before starting. "you've seen the X-Men on TV right Xand?" she asked to which Xander nodded in response, a slight frown on his face as he was still trying to decide where Buffy was going with this. "You know what they can do right?" Buffy asked and once again he simply nodded. "There are so many things each one of them can do… so many powers."

"Yeah Buff," Xander nodded in agreement. A smirk crossed his face as he added, "guess that's why they're called superheroes huh?"

"I know," Buffy said giving him the look that clearly stated 'I'm not stupid you know!'

She paused for a second before continuing, "The potentials… ever since I defeated that turok-han, they've all started looking up at me like they finally respect me and stuff you know?" Buffy turned to Xander who nodded in agreement.

He had seen it of course. Before Buffy had killed the turok-han, the vampire that vampires themselves feared, the potentials had been slightly uncertain of Buffy. Wondering whether she was going to be able to protect them from the ancient vampire or not. But when Buffy had defeated the turok-han in front of them… it was almost as though an immediate change had come over the girls. Now when they looked at Buffy, they saw her for who she was… The Chosen One… the Slayer. They didn't all love her… no… but they admired her. But more importantly, they had started believing in her.

Buffy sighed. "I'm… I'm afraid that when the X-Men come over… they're going to loose that little bit of respect that they have for me in the face of people who are so much more powerful then me."

Xander let out a heavy sigh. So this was what this was all about. Buffy was insecure about her position within Scooby Central once the X-Men come over. She was correct of course. The things that most members of the X-Men could do were simply astounding. But he wasn't about to let their superior powers make his best friend loose confidence in herself.

"You're wrong Buffster," Xander started after considering his words. Buffy frowned slightly and was about to shake her head when Xander continued, "you're right. The X-Men… they are powerful. Most of them are more powerful than you."

"Gee Xand," Buffy muttered annoyingly, "that sure makes me feel better."

Xander just ignored what Buffy said and added, "But what you're forgetting is the fact that you're The Slayer. The Chosen One. So what if most of them have more power that you… what you may lack in power you make up for it in experience." Xander paused for a second and added in a serious tone. "Buffy… they seem like good kids. They were never asked to go around saving people but they do that anyways. Don't think about how much they could outclass you in the power department Buffster… but think about how much they could learn about the life of a hero from a veteran like you." The young man turned to regard his blond companion and saw her processing every word he had just said. "Heck Buffy, think about all the stuff we've had to go through over the years. These kids need to know that things are not always going to turn out the way they want them to when they lead the kind of life we do. Who knows… maybe it was planned all along for them to come here during this battle." When Buffy frowned slightly, Xander explained. "You know… to meet up with you… to not only help out with our fight… but also to learn from the best. And there is no one in the world best suited to teach these kids about fighting demons and stopping apocalypses than you."

"You really think that about me?" Buffy asked a little uncertainly.

Xander in return just smiled brightly and said, "Buffy, if there's one thing I've learned over the years… it's to have complete faith in you."

Buffy Summers let a bright smile wash over her face as all her worries and insecurities simply melted away. She turned and pulled her best friend in a fierce hug who returned it just as fiercely.

"Xand? I ever tell you how much I love you?" Buffy asked… her voice slightly muffled due to the fact that her face was still buried in Xander's chest.

"Well… I could always use some more convincing," Buffy looked up at Xander not missing the flirting tone that he had just used. Buffy pushed away from him and slapped him across the arm playfully before laughing out loud at her best friend's antics. Xander joined her if only for a few seconds before finally letting out an "Ow!" before starting to rub the spot where Buffy had slapped. Sometimes he wondered if she truly forgets that she was the one with the super-strength and durability and not him. Buffy however had the civility to look a little apologetic as the man rubbed his sore arm. Before Xander could chastise her in his usual comical tone, both the Scoobies noticed that the wind had suddenly somehow picked up all around them. It was also then that they both heard it. The sounds of some kind of engine humming.

Buffy and Xander immediately scanned the area for possible threats only to find that the sound they had both picked up on was coming from over their heads. So they turned their heads to look up … and promptly let their jaws hit the forest floor.

There, suspended at least five or six stories above them was the sleek black jet that had over the past one or two years become the trademark transport medium for the X-Men. Xander wondered momentarily if they were just going to open a hatch and then fly, or just jump down from that height. That undeniably would be somewhat cool to watch in real life. However, he was disappointed vaguely as the jet designated to the X-Men hovered in that same place for a few moments before employing its vertical thrusters to glide down and land on the open field.

As it was landing Xander turned to look towards Buffy and asked, "So… looks like the cavalry's here."

"Looks like," Buffy replied without turning to look at him. Xander tried not to smile as he watched his best friend fix her hair, straighten out her dress, as if she was going in for an interview that was going to land her the job of a lifetime rather than meeting the X-Men.

"Buffy," he called out.

"Yeah?" Buffy responded.

"You look great," Xander assured the young woman as she smiled back at him in thanks.

They took a few steps towards the jet that had just landed in front of them as Xander asked, "you nervous?"

Buffy hesitated for a second before answering. "Umm… a little," she responded with a slight shrug.

"Good," Xander sighed in relief. Buffy just turned a quizzical expression on him as he said with a slight shrug of his shoulders as well, "I thought I was the only one."

As they neared the jet, they heard the engines turn off in sequence as the jet powered down. They watched a ramp lowering itself from one side of the jet and onto the forest floor. Buffy felt her throat going dry as her nervousness increased somewhat at the prospect of meeting people who were in most possibility more powerful than her. She growled at herself in admonishment. She was the slayer for God's sake. She has been fighting demons and stopping apocalypses since before the X-Men knew how to throw a punch… she hoped. And yet, here she was as nervous as a girl on her first day at a new school… in a new town. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself as the hatch opened completely and a slightly taller but petite figure of a young girl rushed out of the jet and threw herself into the arms of her older sister.

"Buffy!" Dawn cried out as she hugged Buffy intensely which Buffy was about to return ten-folds but stopped as an image of Dawn whining about how sore she was because Buffy had used all her super-strength in hugging her back entered her thoughts.

"Dawnie," Buffy closed her eyes as she hugged her own flesh and blood. Even though it had been slightly more than a day that the girl had been gone from her home in Sunnydale, it had felt like an eternity to her. In some sense, it felt as though a part of herself had returned to her finally. And she also knew that when it came to Dawn, the girl that had been literally created from her own blood… that statement was truer on more levels than most people would ever know.

"Buffy," Dawn pulled out of the embrace and with excitement Buffy had so very rarely seen on her face she squealed out, "you have got to go to the X-Mansion once this fight is over… they've got like the coolest things. And they all have like super-powers like you… it was sooo cool."

Buffy couldn't stop from smiling back as her sister's enthusiasm and excitement washed over her. A slight cough from the side made the younger Summers turn to find Xander standing there with his arms wide open, and Dawn Summers was more than happy to launch herself at one of her closest friends within the Scoobies.

Buffy watched her sister and her best friend start to exchange stories of all that had transpired in the last day or so forgetting everyone and everything around them briefly. She smiled slightly at her younger sister's exuberance as she finally turned to see her mentor and father figure, Rupert Giles descending the ramp with a small smile on his face as he greeted his favourite charge with a slight tilt of his head. Buffy simply smiled back and nodded her head in return. When it came to the man and his surrogate daughter, words were almost never needed.

"Hey G-Man," Xander called out to Giles as Dawn finally stopped to take a breath from spilling everything about her more or less exciting time back in Bayville. "Welcome back."

Giles groaned as Xander called him by the nickname he despised so very much. His hopes that the X-Men had not heard the young man calling out to him by that nickname was shattered when he heard the slight chuckle that had resonated from the person who had just followed him down the ramp.

Curiosity getting the better of her, Buffy leaned her body to the side to look past Giles and try and catch a glimpse of whoever it had been that had let out that chuckle and was greeted with the sight of a tall young man, probably just a year or so younger than herself, wearing a long brown trench coat descending the ramp just a few short steps behind the older Englishman. The one thing that stood out with the man was the fact that even though it was night time, the man was still wearing his sunglasses.

Buffy smiled at the man politely and a little forcefully as she swallowed a nervous lump in her throat. She looked towards Giles to ask him to introduce the man to her but apparently that was not necessary as the man walked past Giles… or rather sauntered past Giles exulting confidence she had so rarely seen in people.

"Ello Chére," the man said in a thick Cajun accent as he took Buffy's hand in his. The man took off his sunglasses with his other hand and Buffy's eyes widened momentarily as she was greeted with not the usual norm but rather that of a red pupil on black eyes. However, instead of getting agitated or her slayer senses kicking in, she suddenly started to feel… relaxed. The man just smiled at the young woman in front of him, raised her hand to his mouth and kissed the back of her hand with a bow. Buffy's smile started to get wider.

"De name's Remy LeBeau," the man introduced himself as he lowered her hand and stepped back slightly. "But y'can call me Gambit."

"It's… nice to meet you," Buffy said as she tried very hard to get rid of the goofy grin she knew she had plastered over her face.

"Y'know," the man started, "When G-Man here…". Giles let out another groan as he realised he now had two people who were going to call him by that infernal nickname to cope with. Gambit for his part simply ignored the older man's plight and continued, "…told us dat de slayer was the one responsible fo' makin' sure the sun kep' on rising every single day," he smiled in the most charming way only the X-Men's resident Cajun charmer was capable of as he took in Buffy's strikingly attractive face and lips and the beautiful hazel green eyes, and drawled out, "but G-Man sure fo'get t'mention… dat y' were one. belle. femme."

Buffy had no idea what Gambit had just said. She had barely been able to make out the parts that had been English. The fact that maybe he was not even speaking English did cross her mind for a brief instant. In the end, she decided it didn't really matter. She had bigger problems to worry about. For example… whatever the man in front of her had said had triggered this really… truly goofy smile to surface to her face and she was certain if she didn't find a way to make the smile disappear from her face, it was going to end up tearing her face by splitting it into two. Death by grinning, that was certain to land her in the history books as The Slayer to die the funniest of deaths ever.

However, her salvation did come in the form of someone coughing intentionally from behind the Cajun X-Men. Buffy's smile was replaced with a slight crinkling of her eyebrows followed by a frown as she watched the man's eyes widened in fear for a flash of a second before he literally swirled around to greet the person who had just coughed.

"Ah Chére," Buffy watched as the man who called himself Gambit greeted a young girl. Buffy could tell that the girl was a Goth from the amount of make-up that was apparent on the girl's face.

'Great,' Buffy thought to herself as she remembered a certain girl she saved from a vampire worshiping cult. 'From the looks of it we got ourselves another Anne.' And then she remembered that she herself was a vampire lover. Well, ok, there had been only two and both of them had been good vampires… kind off. On occasion they had been evil but still, they were good guys in the end. Buffy frowned as she cleared her head in time to hear the girl growling out at the young man she had come to know of as Gambit. "How mahny tahmes do ah have ta tell yah, ah am NOT yar chére."

Buffy noticed the most distinguishing feature about the girl was the bangs of pure white hair that seemed to loosely fall on both sides of her face. The girl had rather sharp and striking features and Buffy couldn't help but wonder why the girl decided to put that much make-up on her face. It was giving her a more subtle look. Without the make-up, Buffy could've sworn the girl would have looked even more beautiful. The girl had piercing almond grey eyes, a sharp jaw-line with high cheek bones, and a dimple chin that only gave her a more mysterious appearance.

The other thing Buffy noticed was that she seemed to be covered from neck to toe in clothing. Going as far as wearing gloves on her hands. In fact, she then noticed that both the man and the young girl were wearing what looked like tight black leather uniforms with the man wearing knee high combat boots, while the gothic girl wore ankle high boots. Gambit's boots also had extra padding around the knees. In fact, she would go as far as to say that both Gambit and the gothic girl were wearing some kind of bodysuit. Gambit also had some kind of face mask which covered his forehead, the sides of his face and neck and therefore seemed to be connected to his bodysuit. Both the X-Men also seemed to be carrying back-packs. Her attention was snapped away from scrutinizing their uniforms when she felt the girl looking straight at her… or rather glaring at her.

"Umm," Buffy thought she better as well get the civilities out of the way. "I'm Buffy." She said as she took a step forward to shake the girl's hand. The Goth in return stared at the extended hand for a second before finally bringing out her own hand to shake that of the petite blonde's.

"Rogue," was all the girl would say as she shook the older woman's hand, a somewhat fierce look still on her face. Even though Buffy kept a smile on her face, a part of her wondered what she had done to get on the girl's bad side.

As the girl let go of Buffy's hand and stepped back, the man called Gambit stepped up beside her, a grin plastered across his face as he placed a hand around the young girl's shoulder and said, "Miss Summers, Remy glad y'got t'meet ma belle chére."

"Swamp Rat!" the girl growled out once again as she brushed off the man's hand. "Do yah have a hearing problem? Ah told yah and ah'll tell yah again… I AM NOT YER CHÉRE." With that the girl turned and stalked away muttering something under her breath that was so low that even with her enhanced hearing, Buffy had difficulty understanding it.

Buffy stared at the girl in confusion as she walked some distance away, stopping only to nod at Xander who was staring at the girl with a goofy grin of his own plastered across his face. The Slayer turned to catch the man she had come to know of as Gambit staring forlornly at the retreating figure and realised that the young man must have very strong feelings for the Goth. But from the way the girl brushed off his advances, it was clear that the feeling was not reciprocated by the young woman.

As if knowing that Buffy was looking at him, Gambit turned and said, "She really be ma chére," he leaned forward and said, "She jus' shy to admit it y'know." With that, he skipped after the young Goth but not before stopping to shake Xander's hands and saying a quick "Bonjour mon ami" to her best friend. As he ran towards the young Goth, the girl whirled around and started throwing another tantrum as he tried to get into her good graces.

Buffy turned to see that her mentor, Giles was watching the antics of the duo as well. Giles watched as Rogue advanced on Gambit who was backing away from the temperamental girl while holding up both his arms out in front of himself in somewhat of a pleading manner and also to fend of any attacks from the young Goth. "They are going to help us defeat the First Evil?" Buffy asked her mentor as she turned her eyes back at the couple in time to witness the girl launch herself at the man, grabbing him in a headlock, and give him one mean knuckle-sandwich to the top of the man's head as the man flayed his arms about trying to get loose.

Giles was about to respond to Buffy's query but he didn't have to as Dawn walked up to her with Xander trailing behind her and said, "Don't worry about it Buffy. You'll get used to them." Buffy just raised an eyebrow and gave her sister a disbelieving look. "Think of them as," Dawn thought for a second before finishing, "entertainment providers for the bored potentials."

Hearing the foot steps of someone else coming down the ramp, Buffy turned her head to see four more people coming down. The first one to come down was a tall young man with dark brown hair, wearing the same black bodysuit like Gambit and Rogue. The only difference between his bodysuit and Rogue's was the fact that unlike Rogue, his bodysuit had short sleeves and he also seemed to be wearing some padding around the shoulders beneath the suit that gave him a broader appearance. His attire was completed with a yellow belt which looked more like a utility belt. There was also a yellow y-shaped holster that was fastened around his chest. But the one thing that set him apart from the rest of the group was the visor with red-tinted lenses that seemed to have an almost reddish glow to it.

Holding on to his arm and walking down the ramp in step with the young man was a tall and beautiful redhead with shoulder length hair and a mask much like that of Gambit's that seem to cover her diamond shaped face. The mask was connected to the girl's own bodysuit at a yellow v-shaped collar. Buffy noticed that the girl's bodysuit was sleeveless and she wore protective pads around her shoulder joints as well as a pair of gloves which covered her palms, wrists and forearms but left her fingers exposed. The girl was also wearing slightly lower than knee-high boots beneath the suit, and the only way Buffy was able to see this was because of the way her suit was brunched up slightly near the top of the boots. Both of them carrying backpacks as well. She guessed that since they were all staying over in Sunnydale, it was obvious they would bring their clothes and necessities along with them.

Following the two down the ramp was another pair. However, unlike the two who had come out first, these two seemed a little younger, possibly just a year older than Dawn or around the same age as her sister, and not to mention a lot more nervous. The girl, Buffy was glad to find was actually just about as tall as her. Though she would never admit it but she was getting slightly miffed at the fact that both the girl's who had come down first had been taller than her by at least six inches. This particular girl who was walking down the ramp had a heart shaped face with brown hair pulled back into a ponytail, her doe eyes nervously looking about in every direction as though she was waiting for someone or something to pounce at her from any direction. She was also wearing the same bodysuit like the rest of the others and had been covered from head to toe as well. When it came to apparels, she had a gauntlet that ran the full length of her forearm in each hand, the same belt as the rest of the others; only hers was buckled to the side. There was a holster on her left thigh with a small pouch and she also seemed to be wearing some very comfortable looking boots.

Following the girl down the ramp was a young man who seemed to be in his late teens wearing a bright Hawaiian t-shirt, some shorts, and a pair of slippers. Buffy had just turned away from the duo to introduce herself to the tall young man and redhead who had stopped just a few feet in front of her when her head snapped back at the two younger teens… but more specifically to the young man and his attire.

Bright blue Hawaiian t-shirt with yellow flower patterns. Check.

Khaki shorts. Check.

Pair of slippers. Check.

As if feeling eyes on him, the young man turned to meet the eyes of the slayer and let out a nervous chuckle. "Heh-heh." He raised a hand and waved at the blond Slayer who was not even trying to close her mouth which was hanging open in shock at the sight of the young man. "Hallo!" the young man said in a thick German accent as he smiled baring all his teeth at the young woman. "Nice veather ve are having today… ja?"

Buffy, still trying to recover from the sight of a person who looked as though he belonged somewhere lounging in the sun sipping on… something… than with the X-Men did not notice the fact that her best friend, Xander, who had also been staring at the young man's attire in surprise as he had expected the young man to be wearing some form of bodysuit just like the others, recover first, look around in every direction as though trying to decide something, and then simply point in a particular direction and state in a matter-of-fact tone, "Hate to break it to you buddy… but I think Hawaii is that-a-way."

As Xander finished, the girl nearest to the young man turned to see what they were looking at and yelped in surprise as though the young man had not been wearing the clothes he was wearing before he came down the ramp. The girl then went on to put her hands on her hips and ask in somewhat of a shrill voice, "Kurt… what the hell do you think you're like doing?"

At the tone of the girl's voice, the young man with the visor turned to see what the commotion was and Buffy heard him let out a groan. In her peripheral vision she caught the red head clamp a hand over her mouth and tried desperately to stifle a giggle at the sight of the young man. Behind her Dawn's eyes widened to the size of saucers and Giles said in a surprised voice, "Dear Lord."

If Buffy had turned, she would have caught Rogue walking up to the group with Gambit in the background laying sprawled out on the grass saying phrases like, "look a'all de pretty stars."

"Keety… pleaze," Buffy heard the young man speak in whispers to the young girl in front of her. He spared a nervous look in Buffy's direction and added, "I did not vish to scare anyvone. You know very well how people get ven they see me first."

Buffy frowned slightly. What was going on here?

"Oh come on Kurt," the girl Buffy now knew as Kitty thanks to her enhanced hearing scoffed. "From what we heard about her, she's probably like seen weirder." Kitty paused for a second before waving a hand at his attire and asking, "And why did you pick the tropical image?"

"Umm," the young man, Kurt leaned forward and whispered somewhat embarrassedly, "I… I zhink I pressed ze wrong dials on ze image inducer."

"Helloooo!" Buffy called out finally garnering the attention of both the teens, "Enhanced hearing here. I can actually hear everything you are saying."

"Mein Gott!" Kurt whispered leaning close to Kitty, "zhe can hear everyzhing ve are zaying?"

"Yes I caaaan," Buffy rolled her eyes and answered for the young girl.

Kitty just turned to Kurt and whispered back, "I think that's a yes."

For a moment the young man looked as though he was about to bolt. But then decided against it when he saw Buffy smile at the young man warmly and take a step towards the duo.

"Hi, my name is Buffy," Buffy introduced herself as she came forward and offered her hand to the young man who seemed to be the most nervous of the group. However, that offered hand was snatched away by the young girl Kitty who shook it vigorously and gushed, "wow… its like so cool to finally meet you… I'm Kitty." Buffy smiled somewhat forcibly at the young girl as she tried to pry her hands out of the girl's grasp to no avail while the girl went on. "Dawn's been telling us so much about you… it's just… wow… what an amazing life you've led."

"Has she now?" Buffy said as she spared a menacing look over her shoulder at Dawn who was wise enough to hide behind Giles. Buffy finally turned back to cast a glance at her hand which was still in the grasp of one very enthusiastic Kitty… known by the rest of the X-Men as Shadowcat. Kitty realising that she was still holding on to Buffy's hand released it immediately and smiled sheepishly at the beautiful blond in front of her. Her hands finally free, Buffy spared Kitty another smile before turning to face the young man Kitty had called Kurt and asked, "So… what's this I hear about an image deducer?"

"Inducer," Kitty corrected her automatically.

"Right… inducer," Buffy repeated the word… even though she had no idea what it actually referred to. "So… what's this I hear about an image inducer?"

Kurt seemed to chew on his lips fore a second in quiet contemplation as he finally said, "you see, I… don't alvays look like zhis."

Buffy simply shook her head and stated, "Listen… you don't need to be afraid of showing your real self to us… trust me, it won't matter what you look like to any of us."

Kurt seemed to look at Kitty for support as she just smiled and nodded. Behind Buffy, the young man with the visor tensed slightly as he knew this was going to be a turning point. They will find out here and now whether Buffy Summers, The Slayer was capable of working with an X-Man who had very obvious mutations. Especially because of the way Kurt's mutation made him look. A hand found its way around his own and he looked to the side to see his beautiful girlfriend give him an encouraging smile and a gentle squeeze… it was her way of stating everything was going to be alright. And he found himself relaxing immediately and returning the gesture.

Kurt finally shrugged and said, "Oh vell… better now zhan never." With that, Buffy watched as the young man touched a button on his watch and suddenly his entire appearance changed. What had once been a teenager with pale complexion… had been replaced by that of a demon look-alike with blue fur all over his entire face and body, three fingers on each hand as well as two toes on each foot. Buffy from her vantage point in front of the young man could make out a prehensile pointed tail that seemed to be swishing about behind the young man, whether it was doing that in nervousness or not she would never know. The teenager also had pointed elfin ears as well as glowing yellow eyes which made the pupils barely visible.

Seeing that Kurt was about to sigh dejectedly, Buffy immediately said, "Hey, You're the blue guy who's always waving at the TV every time you guys are on it."

Encouraged by the fact that the woman did not get scared and not to mention the fact she recognised him from his appearances on TV alongside the rest of the X-Men, the furry blue teenager dramatically ran a hand through his hair and said, "vhat can I say… the cameras just love ze fuzzy-blue-elf."

Buffy let out a snort as she finally extended her hand to shake that of the young man. Kurt took it and Buffy couldn't help notice that the fur on the young man's hand was as soft as silk. Kurt bowed dramatically and said, "Ze name's Kurt Wagner," with that he stood up straight and announced with his head held up high, "but in ze Munich Circus, I vas known az the Incredible Nightcrawler."

From behind Buffy, she picked up someone let out a snort. Kitty however just smacked the young man across the head and said, "Kurt… you were never IN the Munich Circus."

"Vell, I can dream can't I?" Kurt said indignantly as he rubbed the spot on his head where the young girl had just smacked him.

Seeing the confused look on Buffy's face, Kitty explained. "He's always had this dream about being an acrobat in the Munich Circus. Sometimes he likes to pretend that he actually was a part of them."

Buffy nodded in acknowledgement. She has had such dreams and aspirations as well. Buffy smiled at the young man and said, "I'm sure you'll make a great performer."

"You really zhink so?" Kurt said as he smiled brightly at the young woman. He turned to Kitty and stated happily, "See, zhe has never even seen vhat I can do and zhe already zhinks zhat I'll make a great performer."

"Yeah well until then, you're going to have to be content with being the Incredible Nightcrawler of the X-Men." Kitty simply stated with a smirk.

Buffy's attention was finally pulled away from the younger two as her younger sister came up to her and said, "Buffy," Buffy turned to acknowledge Dawn as the younger Summers continued with a smile, "there's someone I want you to meet." Buffy noticed that the young man with the visor and the tall and beautiful redhead were standing just behind Dawn as her younger sister gestured towards the man with the visor and said, "Buffy, I want you to meet Scott Summers." Dawn made certain that she emphasised on the last name of the young man. Buffy however had already known this because of the big fuss that Willow had made once they found out the leader of the X-Men was also a Summers. "Guess what… he's…" Dawn started but was cut off by Buffy.

"The leader of the X-Men," Buffy finished for her younger sister as she nodded in acknowledgement of the young man. "It's nice to finally get to meet you."

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well ma'am," Scott Summers said as he smiled at the now oldest Summers in the group. He however noticed the frown that had crossed Buffy's face and wondered what he had done wrong.

"Umm…just Buffy will do," Buffy stated which only made Scott let out a chuckle. "Ma'am just sounds so… ma'am you know?" Buffy finished as Scott nodded. She wondered once again if they were related or not. No matter what, she didn't think that Willow will let her rest until they had found out for sure. Then, remembering something, she said, "I remember the first time I saw you. You were fighting that big man with the metal bowl over his head."

Scott blinked behind his visor. Metal bowl? She couldn't possibly mean… he stifled a laugh with a choked cough as his girlfriend answered for him smiling all the way, "I think you mean the Juggernaut. And," Jean paused for just a second before adding, "It was actually a mystical helmet to keep out psychics from entering his mind… umm… not a metal bowl."

"Oh," was all Buffy could say as she nodded her head, slight puzzlement creasing her eyebrows. "Damn… should've paid more attention to those articles when Willow was reading them out," she muttered under her breath. Realising what she had done, she looked up to see if Scott and Jean had heard her little outburst but only saw them both supporting tight smiles across their faces and Buffy could not help herself but smile back, albeit awkwardly.

"I'm Jean by the way," Jean introduced herself as she shook the older blonde's hand.

When Buffy noticed Scott's attention directed towards the ramp, Buffy turned to see the silhouette of a girl in a wheelchair being led down the ramp by a short but gruff looking man. Following the duo were two more individuals. She wondered briefly how many people were actually going to stay in Sunnydale to help her out.

Her eyes however found themselves stuck on a person she could only describe as an ethereal goddess. She had seen her on the articles Willow had pulled out and didn't think the pictures in the articles did the woman any justice. This woman that came down the ramp with perfect style and grace had flowing white hair that complimented her chocolate skin tone very nicely. She was wearing pretty much the same bodysuit including the same mask both Jean and Gambit had been wearing, a yellow utility belt with the red on black X symbol at the belt buckle. The only extra apparel she noticed was the long flowing cape that hung from the woman's shoulders. At her side was a young man who didn't look any older than seventeen with neatly combed brown hair, wearing the same bodysuit as the rest of the X-Men. He shot her a smile and Buffy found herself returning it.

Buffy then turned to meet the girl in the wheelchair… and instantly felt sorry for the young girl.

The girl looked… well… horrible, miserable, awful, would probably be an example of the kinds of words one would use at that instant. The girl was wearing a bulky orange coat which was actually huge enough to cover her from her neck to just a little above her knees. She had a pink scarf which covered most of her neck and lower part of her face and a thermal cap covering the top of her face. Peeking in from between the two items was the small face of a Chinese girl who seemed to have caught a nasty cold from the way she was sniffling each and every time she took a breath.

Buffy couldn't help but feel a little sorry for the girl's current state. She was about to walk over to introduce herself when she felt the eyes of the man who led the girl out of the jet on her. She looked up to meet the man's eyes… and for a moment, she froze.

The colours of the eyes were different, the man was different, but she knew she had seen the same eyes before. Every time she had looked into the eyes of Angel, and more recently Spike, she had seen those eyes. Eyes that belonged to someone who had seen and probably done more than what most people would have done in two or three lifetimes. Eyes that spoke of age, wisdom, and an unbridled fury simply waiting beneath the calm surface to be released on anyone who would dare to cross the man's path. The way he was hovering protectively over the potential slayer, Buffy was going to add that that also applied to anyone or anything that crossed anyone the man cared about.

Good.

Buffy could sense the dangerous vibes that were coming from the man in waves. It was so much so that for a second or two, her slayer instincts had clearly pinned the man as a threat. But Buffy had been quick to bury the urge to jump over the potential slayer in the wheelchair and lash out at the man and take him out.

The man was a threat. And that was going to be a good thing for the Scoobies. They were in desperate need for more Spike's and Angel's who would be able to do a lot of damage to demons without flinching and the man definitely seemed to fall under the category. She didn't even know what kind of powers the man had but she definitely knew a warrior when she saw one.

Silence reign between the two heroes for what seemed like a long time, but had actually been less than a few seconds. The man for his part, Buffy noticed had a curious expression on his face. As though she was familiar to him somehow… this however she knew was impossible.

The man, she noticed was just about as tall as her with a very gruff and stern looking demeanour. Unlike the others, he was not wearing any bodysuit, but rather a dark brown summer jacket over a black t-shirt and dark blue jeans. It was the man's hair that she had to admit was the oddest. The sides of his hair she noticed were somewhat pointed giving them the appearance of large wolf-like ears.

Finally, Buffy stepped forward to break the tension that had been building up as she nodded at the older man once. This brought the man out of his intense scrutiny of the blonde Slayer as he responded with a nod of his own.

Buffy was going to introduce herself to the man, the beautiful African woman with the white hair and the young man who had come down the ramp, but first she thought she'd introduce herself to the young potential slayer. She walked up to the wheel chair, smiled her most brilliant smile at the young potential and said, "Hi…you must be Jubilee." Buffy stuck out her hand for the girl to shake.

The girl for her part looked up a little groggily at Buffy's extended hand, looked up to meet the slayer's beautiful hazel green eyes, and looked down at the offered hand once again. As the girl finally reached out to take Buffy's hand in her own, something in the back of Buffy's mind told her to get away from the girl. Buffy, ignored it as she saw no danger in shaking the girl's hand but realised a second later that she should really start trusting in her slayer instincts… as the girl started to say something, but that was soon replaced by an "ung!" and another "uuunngh!" before the young potential jerked her head back and brought it forward again letting out a mighty sneeze… expelling nasal bacteria and a little spit from her mouth right on Buffy's proffered hand.

Buffy stayed frozen for a few seconds quelling the urge to say "eeewwwww" as she looked at her hand which was now covered in… things that will not be mentioned here. The girl's eyes went wide as she realised what she had done and looked up to meet Buffy's eyes as she somewhat frantically apologised. "I'm dooo dorry," she said as she dabbed at her nose with the free hand, Buffy noticed with some disdain without the use of any tissues, "I gud a cold."

It took a second for Buffy's mind to decipher the coded language as she responded by separating her hand from that of the youngster before the girl let out another sneeze. A handkerchief popped up beside her and she turned slightly to see Giles holding it for her. Giles, dear dependable and always prepared for everything Giles. Buffy took the handkerchief gratefully and started wiping her hand as she spared the young Chinese girl a tight smile and said, "Its alright." As she wiped her hand clean, she added with a shrug of one of her shoulders, "Once you get used to getting covered in vamp dust, things like this doesn't bother you anymore."

In reply, Jubilee just let out another "uuunngghh!" and Buffy backed away from the girl as she looked as though she was about to sneeze again. A slight chuckle from the side attracted her attention to the young man with the brown hair who said with good humour, "way to make a first impression Jubes."

In response, Buffy's eyes widened as she watched the young Chinese girl snarl at the young man and raise a hand in the teenager's direction and let out sparkling lights which not only gave out the sounds of fireworks going off but also seem to look like it. Having never seen anyone use mutant powers before in front of her very eyes… Buffy couldn't help but be awed at the display.

The teenager for his part dived out of the way as he let out a string of protests at the young girl's outburst.

"JUBILATION!" Buffy heard the commanding voice of the African woman call out to the younger girl in a very stern tone. "You will stop that at once."

Jubilee however simply complained, "It's all his fault Miss Ro." She sniffed rather loudly before continuing, "He's the one who iced up the pool side making me fall into It." the girl sniffed again before giving the young man another death glare before continuing, "getting me and my new cast all wet and then me having ta spend the rest of the day in the infirmary again."

"Oh come on Jubes," the young man protested as he picked himself up from the grass. "You know it wasn't meant for you. I was aiming for…" the teenager stopped when he saw the gruff looking man's head snap in his direction fixing the young man with a deathly glare as he rethought what he was about to say and continued on a little nervously, "… no one. Cause you know how it's not ok to use powers unless we are in the Danger Room… heh." He let out a nervous chuckle as he noticed the gruff looking man's glare not faltering in the slightest.

Jubilee on the other hand had a smug look plastered across her face as the gruff looking man who stood behind her stated to the young teenager who Buffy noticed was starting to look a little paler, "YOU and I are gonna have a little chat when I get back… popsicle."

"Heh," the teenager the gruff looking man called 'popsicle' let out another nervous chuckle and then looked down at the ground before stating, "umm… sure Logan."

Now she had a name to the man. She couldn't quite figure out which one of the X-Men he was at first since the man was out of costume. Well, it probably wouldn't have mattered because Buffy really didn't know much about the X-Men to begin with. Keeping back the hordes of hell from invading earth on a regular basis really did take up a lot of her time to keep up on current events.

She saw the attractive African woman with the white hair walk up to give her a tight smile before stating, "I am Ororo Monroe." Buffy returned a smile and the Scoobies who had been around Buffy the longest could tell that Buffy was indeed a little nervous as she extended a hand for the older woman to shake on and introduce herself. Ororo then proceeded to introduce the young man with the brown hair as Bobby, otherwise known as Iceman, and then Jubilee, whom the weather goddess remarked with an amusing smile Buffy clearly had had the pleasure of meeting.

"Oh yeah!" Buffy stated, a smile finding its way to her face as she turned her head slightly and regarded the young Chinese American girl who just waved back, still looking a little embarrassed at how their initial meeting had gone just moments prior. Buffy then turned to introduce her best friend Xander who with a goofy expression on his face waved back at the weather goddess who simply smiled back in return. Ororo herself turned and gestured towards the gruff looking man and introduced him even though Buffy already knew him as Logan.

"Logan is a senior instructor back at the institute," Ororo stated to the young woman in front of her. The woman looked around at all the X-Men who had gathered and said in a serious voice to Buffy, "I leave with you people who are closest to my heart… take care of them."

"I will," Buffy replied just as seriously and with conviction. It was obvious that the woman cared deeply for each and every one of the X-Men who were there at that moment. And how the fact that she was about to leave them in the middle of a war that could very well decide the fate of the world was very hard for her.

The older woman just nodded and turned to the gruff looking man and said, "Logan."

"Don't worry Ro," Logan assured the African woman. "I'll keep a close eye on everyone."

Ororo Monroe smiled at the man and then turned to face the rest of the X-Men who Buffy saw had edged closer to the older woman. "All of you… take care," She said as she gave everyone a tight smile.

"Y'don' need t'worry about nuttin' Stormy," the man known as Gambit announced. "Gambit and de rest jus' gonna kick some demon butt and we all back in Bayville befo' y'know it."

Scott Summers, the leader of the X-Men simply nodded in affirmation of what the man with the red on black eyes just said. "We'll let you know if we need anymore help," he said with a single nod of his head.

"Good," Was all the African woman would say. She gave Giles and Xander a parting smile and was about to walk back up the ramp but stopped, turned her head slightly and said with a small amount of annoyance seeping through her voice. "And Gambit," Gambit perked up to hear what the weather goddess wanted to say to him. "Don't call me Stormy." This was followed by a loud thunder that resonated throughout the sky making a few people jump… including the Cajun who had not expected that.

Always quick to recover, Gambit just smiled at the retreating figure and nudged at the young Goth beside him and said, "she don' really mean dat, non?"

Rogue just let out another frustrated "ugh" as she nudged back a little harder making the Cajun charmer stumble slightly before regaining his balance and spare a quick wink at his favourite girl among the X-Men. Rogue for her part just glared back.

Buffy and the rest of the X-Men watched as the young man called Bobby turned and walked up the ramp following the X-Woman in the sleek jet and after just less than thirty seconds the ramp was closed. It took just under a minute for the engines to start up again and for the jet to ascend using its vertical thrusters. As they watched the jet disappear into the night, Buffy turned to Giles and asked a little pleadingly, "how come we don't have a jet?"

Giles, always prepared with an answer simply replied, "Because we do not require the need to go anywhere."

"Oh." Was all Buffy said as she mulled over this information. Once again she turned to the older Englishman and with a wanting gleam in her eyes she said. "Then can we get a car?"

Giles just looked horrified at the suggestion and said, "I took an oath a long time ago to help protect the people of the world from all manner of danger. I will never knowingly put them in any more danger than they already have to deal with on a daily basis."

"What's that got to do with getting a car?" Buffy asked placing her hands on her hips and glaring at the older Englishman.

Giles for his part just took off his glasses, cleaned them with a small cloth, put it back on and said deadpanned. "I would rather set loose a group of demons on an unsuspecting crowd than let you drive around in a car."

"HEY!" Buffy protested loudly garnering the attention of a few of the X-Men. "I am not that bad."

"Yeah right," Buffy turned to shoot a deathly glare at her best friend Xander who had let that remark slip. Xander smiled back at his best friend but diverted the attention away from himself and towards the X-Men who were simply standing around to see what they were supposed to do and said, "Buffy... how about we all head back to base. The others are most probably waiting for us."

Buffy nodded as she looked around at the gathered ranks of the X-men. "Alright guys," she started, "lets all get home before some nasties decided to come out of the woodwork and greet us."

At this revelation, Kitty and Kurt started on with their nervous vigil of their surroundings. The others however seemed pretty nonchalant. Buffy was grateful for that. But she had a feeling that both Kurt and Kitty would need to overcome their nervousness if they are to be useful against the First Evil in this war. She was going to need to have a talk with the young duo.

"Did you move everything to the mansion already?" Giles asked her as they all followed the blonde slayer towards the two parked vehicles. One being Xander's car and another, a rented mini van.

Buffy nodded. "Yup! I called up Angel to let him know we are using his mansion as base." She turned to her mentor and complimented, "that was good thinking Giles," she took a look at the number of X-Men that were present, nearly eight of them and wondered how many more slayers were going to end up arriving in Sunnydale. "I didn't really think we could have managed to put everyone up at my place. It was already crowded to begin with."

Giles simply nodded as they all reached the car.

"Jubes is getting into the minivan with me," he heard the man known as Logan say. That man gave him what Buffy would call the heebie-jeebies. He had seen first hand what he had done to those Bringers back at the X-Mansion. Giles had found out that morning the hard way that even after being in the field for nearly… well, he couldn't even remember when he had started anymore but what he did know was that there were still some things in the world that could make his stomach churn. And hearing from the Professor what the man could do… his healing capabilities that made him a literal immortal among men, he had prayed to whichever higher power that was listening at the time to never let the gruff and extremely dangerous man stray from the path of the good guys. Just the thought of facing him… or rather the thought of sending Buffy or anyone for that matter against him was terrifying.

His attention was however diverted by Xander as the young man called out to everyone. "Alright guys," everyone stopped to turn their attention to him. "First of all, I am sooooo GLAD that I actually got to meet you in person. You guys may not know this, and I may not look it but… I'm actually a very big fan of you and the work you guys do," Xander nodded his head as he let the words sink in. "You guys are my favourite group of superheroes," he added after a pause.

"Aren't we like the only group of superheroes?" Kitty asked Kurt who just looked back at her in return and shrugged.

"And since, you guys came all the way down to help us out… I think as one of the founding members of the Sunnydale Slayarettes…" Xander continued on as Scott looked at his girlfriend Jean Grey and mouthed the word 'slayerettes?'

"Not to mention the fact that I'm one of two people among the slayerettes who were not only born here but raised," he pointed a finger at the ground and added, "right here. Therefore, I think it would automatically fall upon me to do the honours." He paused for a second and made sure everyone's attention was on him. When he knew for certain he had all their attention on him, he spread out his arms as if to encompass the surrounding area and announced, "X-Men… Welcome," he paused slightly for dramatic effect, "To the Hellmouth."

Two of the youngest in the group, Kitty and Kurt didn't know what to say. They simply looked to Scott, their esteemed leader for direction but it seemed Scott was also lost on the fact that Buffy's best friend had just welcomed them all to the Hellmouth. As though it was actually one of the greatest places on Earth to go for a vacation. Buffy just shook her head as she smiled at her friend's antics and Giles just let out a groan and wondered if it was too late to say he didn't know the young man… that well.

"He seems nice," Wolverine heard Jubilee say between sniffles as he helped her get into a comfortable seating position inside the minivan. Gambit just smirked at the young man but frowned when he saw Rogue actually smiling at the Sunnydale Slayerette. Rogue caught the Cajun looking at her and said, "ah lahke him."

Gambit just walked up to the girl of his dreams and asked cockily, "but y'don' like 'im as much y'like Gambit… right Chére?"

Rogue in response just waggled her eyebrows at the Cajun thief as though asking him to figure it out. She then went on to climb into the front passenger seat of the minivan as Xander took the seat behind the wheels. Outside, still waiting for a reply, this time a little nervous desperation seeping through his voice, Gambit asked once again, "Right… chére?"

His shoulders slumped for the briefest of seconds before he just shrugged and climbed into the back of the van. Kurt soon followed in saying there was no room in the car… which was not far from the truth.

* * *

"This is like so totally cool," Katherine Pryde squealed from her seat at the back of the car where she was cramped in with Scott, Jean and Dawn as it moved through Sunnydale, the minivan following not that far behind. "I can't believe the Professor actually sent us to fight off demons and stuff." 

Beside her, Dawn was just as excited as Kitty. She was getting along very well with the young X-Woman as they were more or less around the same age group and had a lot of things in common. Buffy, sitting at the front passenger seat wondered if there was any way they could shut the girl with the valley girl accent up. She turned to see her mentor who had literally snatched the keys to the car away from her when they had been leaving the woods. He seemed to be in a lot of distress over Kitty's constant prattling.

'Good'. Buffy thought. 'Serves him right'.

Scott for his part was trying to rub the headache he was getting from listening to Kitty prattle on.

"Look on the bright side Scott," he heard the voice of his girlfriend Jean speaking into his mind telepathically. "You could've been stuck with Jubilee, Gambit and Kurt in the other van."

Scott shuddered at the thought. Jubilee and Gambit were bad enough. But add Kurt to the mix. Suddenly Kitty's bantering didn't sound that bad… and he even felt his headache receding. Beside him, Jean Grey smiled.

The two vehicles finally arrived in front of an old looking mansion. As the X-Men and Scoobies/slayerettes climbed out of the van, they took a good look at the mansion as Cyclops remarked approvingly, "Nice place."

"Thanks," Buffy said. "Belongs to an ex. He's out of town and asked me to make use of it in the case of an emergency."

Gambit helped Jubilee get into the wheelchair as Wolverine stood to the side letting his senses expand and inspect the mansion. He could smell lingering scents of vampires and other demonic like beings in the area. Which he thought was not unusual since the entire town was standing supposedly on the mouth of hell itself.

"Let's everyone get inside," Logan announced as he fell into step beside Buffy who gave the man a tight smile and the X-Men found themselves walking into a large courtyard.

As they were passing through it, suddenly, Wolverine stopped and started to sniff the air… and started casting suspicious looks at all corners of the courtyard, especially the parts which were shrouded in darkness. Noticing this, Gambit who had been pushing Jubilee's wheelchair stopped and within seconds a handful of card had somehow found their way in between his fingers.

"Wolverine," Scott called out as he too started casting suspicious glances in every direction, a hand ready on his visor. "Anything we should be worried about?"

Kitty and Kurt swallowed their anxiousness and flanked Giles and Dawn from both sides as Rogue simply stood tall and scowled in every direction menacingly.

Wolverine's eyes had by now focused on one particular dark patch. He had noticed a dim glow of red… a glow made from the butt of a cigarette being smoked. A moment later he caught the scent of non-decaying flesh.

Buffy, who was watching the scene unfold beside Logan, wondered what it was the wild looking X-Man was talking about since she had not sensed any danger anywhere in the vicinity. But then again that was one part of her slayer senses she had never truly been able to master. She however did jump back in surprise when two three sets of twelve inch knives shot out from between Wolverine's knuckles and he made a mad dash towards one darkening patch of shadow.

"Not anymore," the man snarled out as he rushed into the shadows.

A fraction of a second later, Buffy heard someone other than Logan cry out in something akin to surprise in a familiar British accent. "Wot the Bloody 'ell?"

Buffy's eyes widened as she realised whom Logan had rushed off to attack. The second and only vampire other than Angel to have ever gained his soul. Spike.

* * *

**To Be Continued…**

* * *

**Author's Notes: -**

Hey all, first of all… MERRY CHRISTMAS and SEASONS GREETINGS to every one of my readers and reviewers. I hope you are all having a wonderful and absolutely fabulous time this holiday… unlike me who am stuck here, away from family working on a fan-fiction because it's a lot better than working on the many assignments I actually have to do. LOL. Anyways… consider this my Christmas gift to everyone. Do drop me your reviews and I will most gladly accept them as my Christmas presents. Heh-Heh.

Secondly, I'm extremely sorry for the delay in updating this chapter even though I had previously intended for this chapter to be updated at least two weeks ago. I'd blame it on school work, which would be true but I'd also have to blame it on being one of the laziest persons on the planet (I should really call up Guinness Book of World Records and give that title a go). But then again this also happens to be my second last semester to getting a Master's degree and, well, let's just say I think the pressure is finally starting to get to me. All I have managed to do is type up just a few hundred words at each sitting. Unfortunately, when a chapter is about ten thousand words, typing up even a few hundred words per day (I really do sit down everyday to type up this story) doesn't allow me to update the story any faster. I'll try my best to update sooner but I won't promise anything. But expect at the very least one chapter from me per month. I really hope you guys will find that satisfactory.

That out of the way… please let me know what you think of this chapter. The reason it took me so long to write was because this was going to be the first meeting between the X-Men and Buffy herself. I had to get the interactions as best as I could. Let me know what you think of the individual encounters… please. And I'm going to have to apologise to everyone about the accents. I'm not very good with them. If it wasn't for the help that was offered by fellow Fan-Fiction writer, Heartsyhawk, I would never have been able to write the accents at all. Thanks for the assist Heartsyhawk. I would also like to thank my good friend Naz for helping me out in describing the costumes of the X-Men since she realised I'm completely fashion illiterate. Heh. Really appreciate the help. It has also been brought to my attention that my grammar tenses within sentences have a habit of shifting from one tense to another. I'm really sorry about that guys… I'll try my level best to reduce the amount of grammatical mistakes that occur within a chapter. But once again, I'm only human and am bound to overlook a few mistakes here and there.

Well, all I have to say before I turn in (its about 3:55 am here) is please; please leave me your reviews. Reviews are like motor oil to get the creative minds of fan-fiction writers going. Umm… just wondering, am I the only one who likes going through the reviews he/she has received from the posting of his/her latest chapter before starting to write up the next chapter as motivation tool. Try it out… hearing people praising you for your effort makes you all smiley inside… no matter how many times you actually read it. Heh.

Take care everyone. Stay safe. And before you leave. **REVIEW... REVIEW… REVIEW**.


	8. Scooby Central

**DISCLAIMER** – The characters of Angel and Buffy the Vampire Slayer belong to Joss Whedon, the WB, UPN, Mutant Enemy, Twentieth Century Fox and others whom I don't know about. The characters of X-Men Evolution are owned by Marvel. I am not in any way affiliated with any of the groups or organizations that hold rights over the characters of Angel or Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or X-Men Evolution and neither have I been authorized to write the following story. This is a non-profit fan based effort and no copyright infringement is intended. So, umm… please don't sue.

The story is mine and therefore I would appreciate it if you would kindly let me know before using any aspects of this story. Also, if you wish to archive it… please just drop me a message.

* * *

**Chapter 8: Scooby Central**

Darkness.

Most were afraid of it. Some were absolutely terrified of it.

But not him. He revelled in it.

Well… he used to, until he got the spark.

Every day and every night, the darkness called out to him. It didn't really matter whether he was awake or asleep. The darkness did not exactly follow a timetable. It was just around, calling out to him, asking him to accept the comfort that could be found within its cold embrace. To revel in the freedom only it could offer.

But he couldn't accept it. Not anymore.

Never since he got the spark.

The spark. The light. Just a small flicker of light within the vastness, the emptiness that comprised of the darkness… and all the things the darkness offered, all its temptations, all its promises, all the comfort and joy and freedom… started to mean nothing at all. Absolutely nothing at all.

Spike.

That was his name. Well, in fact his name was William 'something'. Unfortunately he was not going to reveal that last name to anyone, even if his life, er, un-life depended on it.

William the Bloody. That's what he was known as. One of the most ruthless and ferocious vampires to have ever graced the very planet everyone walked on.

Two slayers.

He had killed two slayers in the past. And he was to this day one of the only few vampires in the entire world to have fought a slayer, defeated a slayer and killed a slayer, all in single hand-to-hand combat without the aide of anyone else. Most vampires, even in large groups are sometimes not enough to best the might and skill of a slayer. But he had done it. All by himself.

Two slayers.

He had come to Sunnydale nearly seven years ago in hopes of finding his third slayer… and had come closer to killing the resident slayer more than any other vampires. Well, except maybe for The Master but then again The Master had not been known as the Master for just his hideous looks. And he was not even going to dignify his grand-poof of a sire's attempts at trying to kill the slayer with a single thought.

The slayer. Buffy Anne Summers.

The small but beautiful blonde had started out as just another conquest. A slayer to best, a slayer to kill. But over the course of the years, she had become so much more. He would be lying if he said he himself had started to mean something to the slayer. But he knew better. At least now anyways. And even though in his dead and century old heart he knew that the slayer didn't care much for his wellbeing, he couldn't just pack up whatever belongings he had, and leave her to face the Big Bad all by herself.

She did care… just a small amount. And that small amount was more than enough to convince him to stick around.

Why? Why would he do this?

Simply because he cared for her a thousand fold in return. More than anything or anyone else on the planet. Well, maybe the amount he cared for Buffy was somewhat on par with how much he cared about Dawn. And as long as there was a single sentient thought left in his long dead body, he was going to make sure that no Big Bad was going to get to them past him.

He didn't really care about redemption. He didn't care much for being a hero either. Or the opinions of others who, though lived under the same roof with him did not trust him at all. They didn't matter. Well, ok, he was probably going to be a little upset if something happened to Anya or Willow. But he did not think he was going to shed a single tear if anything happened to Giles or Xander. Not that he was actually ever going to let anything happen to them of course.

And there… was the kicker. Caring for the diminutive blonde meant caring for everyone the blonde herself cared for. Which usually ended up with him having to risk his own life… or rather, un-life for people he most of the times didn't exactly get along with.

Buffy Anne Summers. A startling and beautiful blonde who had at one time started out as nothing but a conquest to him. Just another slayer to best, just another slayer to kill.

Buffy Anne Summers. Spike sighed. That girl was going to be the death of him. He just knew it. There was literally nothing he was not willing to do for the beautiful slayer. He leaned back and disappeared into the shadows where he was waiting for Buffy and droopy-boy to get back to the mansion with their new friends from New York. The X-Men.

He dug through the pockets of his duster and brought out the packet of cigarette he had stashed away. He took one cigarette, he noticed it was the last one out of the packet, brought it to his mouth and lit it using a Zippo. As he took a long drag, he wondered how in the world mutants had been able to keep themselves hidden for so many years. He'd met a few of course. One does not live for nearly two hundred years without getting to see some rather interesting types of people. However, like most other demons, he had learnt it the hard way that making a snack out of a mutant was never the best of ideas. Especially when some of them could easily turn the tables on him. Spike unconsciously reached out with a hand to rub at a spot on his chin, his eyes slightly distant, as though in reminiscence of pain long forgotten.

The sounds of two vehicles pulling up in front of the mansion brought him out of his musings as he leaned further back into the shadows of the courtyard. Not that he had anything to hide, but he wanted to know what the X-Men's stance on demons was… even good demons such as himself before he had to make his presence known.

He watched as Buffy and a gruff looking man sporting a… especially distinctive hairstyle walked into the courtyard followed by a tall man who had a beautiful redhead holding on to one of his hand, someone whom Spike surmised could most probably give Buffy a run for her money in the looks department. The two, Spike noticed was wearing some kind of bodysuit. And it was somewhat hard to ignore the red tinted visor the young man was wearing. He immediately thought it was an excellent thing on their part that they had arrived prepared for battle. In Sunnydale, one could never be too careful.

Following them in was Dawn and Giles. It was really good to have the little niblet back in Sunnydale.

True, Dawn and he had not exactly been on the best of terms ever since she found out about what he had tried to do to Buffy. Even though his pride would not let him admit it, but he did miss the little chats the two used to share. He hoped to whichever higher power was looking down at him to give him at least the chance to make amends with the young teenager. This may turn out to be the battle of battles and he was going to patch things up between himself and his little friend one way or another.

Following Giles and Dawn were two more teenagers. One was a girl with brown hair pulled back into a ponytail and walking in step with her was, clearly what seemed like a demon with blue fur, three fingers in each hand, two toes and a prehensile tail. Spike let his supernatural senses expand to encompass everything around him for signs of hostile creatures but except for just a slight tingle he could not really sense anything. 'A mutant then,' Spike surmised. Well, he had sat down for a game of kitten-poker with weirder looking creatures, demons and mutants alike. A blue demonic looking mutant should really have come to him as no surprise.

Before he could move on to inspect the next line of super powered guests, his attention was drawn back to the front of the group where the man with the unique hairstyle had suddenly stopped walking and had started casting suspicious glances in every direction and… was he sniffing? Spike narrowed his eyes as everyone in the group instantly became ready for battle. Buffy, he noticed also was looking about, following the man's gaze, and Spike started to do the same from the shade.

Now, he had known for a particularly long period that Buffy was one of the few slayers in history who for some reason or another could not tap into the part of their power which enabled them to sense out demonic creatures. A vampire could walk up behind Buffy in game face and simply turn and walk the other way without Buffy even knowing about the vampire ever being there. Spike, regrettably had actually witnessed it happen once.

It had occurred during one of the times he had first started to secretly document Buffy's strengths and weaknesses nearly seven years ago when he had come into town with hopes of restoring the then ailing Drusilla to her former glory. He had nearly given his position away with bouts of laughter when one of his 'minions' had walked up behind the young blonde slayer, made several faces at her, and then had simply walked away from the completely oblivious slayer. Spike had been waiting in the shadows at the time with another one of his fledglings who was recording the incident with a camera. To this day, it was still one of the funniest things he had ever witnessed. And he still did have that on tape. Maybe one day he could show it to Buffy's friends.

On second thought… maybe he should get rid of that tape before Buffy finds out about it and drives a stake through his un-beating heart. He didn't think she would like being laughed at that much.

However, he did have to admit that where Buffy lacked in sensing out vampires and other demonic creatures, she did make up for it in reacting faster than most slayers he has ever heard of. Buffy would get startled at the sight of a vampire coming towards her for just a split second before the slayer in her would turn the petite blonde into a demon-fighting-vampire-killing machine.

His musings were cut short however as he heard the tall young man with the visor asking the gruff looking man standing beside Buffy, "Wolverine… anything we should worry about?"

SKNIT! SKNIT!

Spike was… well, to say he was enthralled would be an understatement. Even though he has actually seen the man on television a few times along with the rest of the X-Men fighting off one thing or another, it was still something of a sight to actually see the three shiny claw-like-knives sticking out from between the knuckles of each of the man's hands. He had even noticed how Buffy had been slightly startled at the sight of those claws emerging. So focused was he by the sight of the metal claws that he failed to notice Wolverine's piercing gaze literally boring holes in his very direction.

When he finally did look up to meet the man's eyes, all he heard was the man saying, "Not anymore," after which the man let out a feral growl and dashed in his direction… six very sharp, and extremely deadly looking metal claws ready to carve him up into tiny little pieces.

Startled and caught completely off guard for an instant, all Spike could do was let the cigarette that was hanging from his lips fall to the ground and then yell out a "Wot the bloody 'ell?" as the feral mutant launched himself at him.

* * *

Instinctively, he ducked under the first swipe of the claws which would have taken his head off. Realising there was not enough room for him to manoeuvre enough to defend himself properly, well, until Buffy straightened out this whole mess, he ducked under the second swipe, rolled onto the courtyard floor and out of the shadows startling a few of the X-Men in the process. 

"Stop!" he heard Buffy cry out as he got on his feet and turned around immediately to face the clawed mutant, only to jump back to dance out of the way of yet another swipe.

"I'm on your side mate!" Spike exclaimed as he dodged out of the way of yet another swipe. A look into the man's feral eyes told Spike that the man at that moment definitely was not in the mood to listen to anything he had to say. And from what he could hear from the sides, Buffy had her hands full trying to keep the rest of the X-men from jumping into the fray.

"What do you mean stop?" Scott asked exasperatedly, one hand hovering just a centimetre away from the side of his visor where the mechanism that allows him to shoot his optic blasts resided.

"He's a vampire," Scott countered. He knew this information because of his connection with Jean. As soon as Spike had rolled out into the courtyard, Jean had immediately sent a telepathic message to the field leader of the X-Men.

* * *

"Scott," Jean had said. 

"Jean?" Scott had responded immediately picking up on the little distress that Jean was feeling through their very unique psychic link.

"Scott, I… I can't sense him." Jean had said referring to the black-clad figure of the man who had just materialised out of the shadows followed by an enraged Wolverine. "Its like he's not even there." Jean had added.

"Vampire." Scott had growled out telepathically. He had just about blasted the vampire to kingdom come when Buffy had literally jumped between him and his shot and had screamed for everyone to stop.

* * *

"Stop… I mean STOP!" Buffy shouted to all the X-Men. Especially Gambit and Scott who were ready to launch themselves into the fray. Kitty and Kurt on the other hand, not being field leaders and having little to no experience dealing with demons, shared a look with one another and decided to just let the slightly older teens and their hosts settle on how to deal with the situation. 

Jubilee, on the other hand just watched in wide-eyed fascination at the sight of the Wolverine launching attacks upon attacks on the blond man dressed in all black… and a really cool coat to boot, to even hear what it is the others were talking about.

Gambit for his part was half paying attention to the conversation that was going on between Buffy and Cyclops. His focus, like Jubilee was on the Wolverine and the black-clad man. Living with the X-Men, he had found out from simply observing Wolverine that he was most definitely one of the best fighters on the planet. Though at most times the short but ferocious mutant fought like a drunken brawler… Gambit had seen enough to know that there was indeed a technique to his brawling. He would even go as far as to say that Wolverine was probably one of the few people on the planet that he wouldn't mind learning a few more things from.

But tonight, he was seeing something that he found was most interesting. As he watched the fight, he had noticed that all offensive moves had so far been carried out by Wolverine. And so far, all the blonde haired man in the leather duster which even he had to secretly admit looked better than his own slightly faded brown duster, had done was to just duck, roll, and jump out of the reach of Wolverine's claws. The man seemed just as fast as Wolverine, only Wolverine had not landed one single punch on the man. Which he knew was close to impossible. There had been a few close calls, but each and every time the man had somehow evaded the Wolverine's strikes. No, not somehow, expertly evaded each of Wolverine's attacks was more like it.

'Remy t'inkin' Wolvie finally meet 'is match,' the thief from New Orleans mused silently as he watched the blond man sidestep another one of Wolverine's attacks.

He spared a fleeting look in Rogue's direction and noticed her observing the fight with her arms crossed in front of her chest, her face set in that of her customary scowl. He could nevertheless tell that she was itching to lend the Canadian mutant a hand, but was holding herself back. He was partly glad for it. Ever since she had gained her new powers, the source of which was still a cause for concern to almost everyone within the X-Men, she had been a little too eager at times to throw herself into the thick of things.

Previously, before gaining her new powers, she had always been at a slight disadvantage every time she had walked into a battle zone. She had always needed to be cautious. However, ever since these new powers had awakened within her, she had been putting herself in more and more dangerous situations throwing wind to caution at most times. Though she always made sure she was covered from neck to toe so that she wouldn't involuntarily absorb the powers and memories of the person she was facing, it was however the only caution she took when heading into a dangerous situation. Especially since in her mind she believed there was most probably not much she couldn't handle by herself any longer.

Gambit just hoped that she didn't find out the hard way that no matter how powerful someone becomes, there was always someone more powerful and probably more skilled than her to bring that person down a notch or two.

* * *

At the front of the group, Buffy stated to Scott as she still stood between him and his target. "He's one of us." She turned her attention to Giles, a pleading look on her face screaming at him to clear this misunderstanding up. 

Giles looked at the young woman and turned back at the fight where Spike was barely keeping the man from landing any blows. For just a second, he hesitated. But noticing the slight frown on Buffy's face who had nearly noticed his hesitation he quickly turned to Cyclops and nodded. "She's right…. Spike may be a vampire, but he… is one of us."

Scott however had noticed the slight hesitation that had come across the older man's face but had decided to file it away in the back of his mind for future contemplation. Right now, there was an apparently unnecessary fight that needed stopping.

Scott just looked at Jean. "Jean, separate…"

Whatever he was about to say was interrupted by a loud and audible "THUCK!"

This was immediately followed by a distressed cry of "Wolvie!" from the youngest member of the X-Crew. He turned his attention to the fight in time to witness Logan fall to the floor of the courtyard in a heap. A few feet away the blond vampire was staggering away from the fallen mutant, a hand clutching at his forehead. Before Scott could ask what had happened in the split second his attention had been diverted from the fight and to his girlfriend Jean Grey, the vampire started to topple backwards.

Spike was impressed.

The mutant superhero that was attacking him had skill. A lot of skill.

Rarely had he had the opportunity to go up against someone with skill that rivalled his own. But then again he wasn't exactly using all the martial arts skills he had picked up over the course of his long un-dead life now was he. Problem was that… he was holding himself back from tearing into the man. As much as he would have liked to have shown the man the errors of going up against a master vampire, especially one as old, powerful and skilful as him, he had the distinct feeling Buffy was going to beat the un-living tar out of him if he harmed any of the X-Folks… even if it had been in self defence.

'Bugger!' he cursed silently at his predicament. He shot a quick glance in Buffy's and the rest of the X-Men's direction and watched her standing in front of the young man with the visor… if he remembered correctly the one who shot those laser beams from his eyes. His eyes narrowed slightly at the sight. Buffy was using her own body as a shield to effectively keep the man from taking a shot at him.

He turned his attention back to the feral mutant in time to sidestep another swipe of the claws, duck under a roundhouse kick, jump over a leg sweep, and jump out of reach of yet another swipe.

This… he decided was starting to become more than a little irritating.

Buffy was still trying to convince the X-Men about him being on the side of the angels while one X-Man was trying to carve him into exterior decorations… and for Angel's mansion no less. For a second he was almost tempted to let the man dust him as he knew Angel would most likely rid his hands off the mansion once he found out there were Spike dust lying around.

Just the thought of Angel loosing something of monetary value almost made the vampire smile. However, that soon turned into a frown when he realised his plan actually excluded him from being around to witness the expression on Angel's face when Buffy finally tells him there's Spike dust lying around in his precious mansion, and that no matter how many years he spent cleaning and scrubbing and vacuuming, he was most likely never going to get all the Spike dust particles off his property.

'So much for wishful thinking,' Spike mused as he dodged a few more attacks from Wolverine.

As Wolverine launched himself at the master vampire, six sharp claws pointed forward and ready to be driven deep into the vampire's chest, Spike set his jaw tight, stood his ground and waited for the man to come within striking distance. This one-sided fight had gone on long enough… well, ok, the fight had lasted for about thirty seconds but thirty seconds of dodging, ducking, and jumping without retaliating with one single offensive strike of his own was starting to grate on his nerves.

Plus, he hated to admit this but… he was getting a little bored.

Just as Logan's claws came within about six inches of Spike's chest, Spike reached out with supernatural speed that comes only from being a creature of darkness, and grabbed both of Logan's hands right around the wrist from below. Before Logan even registered what was going on, Spike pushed both hands aside so the claws were now pointing somewhere to the side.

Carried by the momentum of his lunge, all Logan could do was watch wide-eyed as Spike reeled his head back, and brought it forward to meet his own in a devastating head butt.

There was an audible "THUCK!" as their foreheads bashed against each other… and Logan slumped to the floor instantly.

Spike heard a young voice call out the name "Wolvie!"

He would've laughed at the fact that he had taken down someone who despite being one of the best fighters he had ever come across… was called Wolvie.

But in actuality, he was not laughing. He was too busy staggering away from the fallen mutant while clutching at his forehead which was throbbing immensely. In the next instant, he felt himself falling backwards and all he could think about was, 'wot the bloody 'ell was the guy's head made off?'

However, before he could hit the floor and do even more damage to his head than he had already done with that particular stunt… a stunt he swore to all the higher and lower powers he was never going to employ again, he found himself being caught within the strong yet familiar hands of the slayer.

* * *

Befuddled at the fact that something had actually occurred in the fraction of a second he had turned to his girlfriend Jean Grey to ask her to separate the two combatants using her telekinesis, Scott Summers, field leader of the X-Men, the young man who was known for keeping a level head in even the most dire of situations, didn't even try and hide the astonishment from his voice as he stuttered out, "Wh-What the hell happened?" 

He looked around waiting for someone to answer to him but was ignored as Kitty rushed past him muttering "Ohmygodohmygodohmygod," while Kurt let out a "Mein Gott!" and teleported himself to the side of the nearly unconscious Logan who was shaking his head and trying to get up.

Gambit was the third individual to reach the feral mutant's side. Wolverine himself was being helped to his feet by both Kitty and Nightcrawler. Rogue's firm and powerful grip on the shoulder of one Asian American teenager was the only thing that held back the clearly distressed girl from getting up from the wheelchair she had been confined to and rush, or rather, hobble to the side of her best friend.

"Sit tight sugah," Rogue told the distraught Asian American girl. "He's taken worse befoh, he's gonnah beh just fahne." Even though Rogue had added that last part confidently, it had done very little to alleviate the panic-stricken Jubilation Lee. Just behind her, Rogue could've sworn she heard the man named Xander curse out under his breath, "Damn… so close."

"B-Bud," Jubilee tried to protest. "Y-you daw haw hard he bas hit," the young girl chocked out in between sniffles. Her words indecipherable due to the cold she was suffering from.

Rogue for her part did not release the grip she had on the young girl's shoulder. Jubilee opted for giving the older girl her best scowl, which Rogue thought considering her puffy cheeks, dreary eyes and slightly reddish nose, looked quite pitiful.

They turned their attention in time to see Logan get himself off the floor with the help of Kurt and Kitty and then take a step in the direction of the Slayer and the vampire.

* * *

He hadn't seen that coming. Logan had not expected the vampire to attack him head on… literally. But then there were only a hand full of people or organisations that knew of his unique enhancements. And the vampire had definitely not been one of them. Well, as much as the head-butt had surprised him a little, in the end, the particular attack had harmed the vampire more than it had harmed him. The only thing that had been bruised had been his ego. 

He had fought vampires before. Plenty of times. Yet, this time had been different.

Never before had he faced one that had lasted more than a few seconds in combat with him. Sometimes they don't even see him as a threat until he was already turning them into dust.

Watching the so called mystical warrior known as the Slayer helping the bleached blonde vampire to his feet, he was starting to realise that this particular vampire may probably be an exception to that norm. He shrugged off the helping hand of both Kurt and Kitty and started to take a step forward to ask the slayer what was going on.

However, a step in the direction of the vampire and the slayer was all he was able to take as Buffy, noticing that he was approaching her and Spike with his claws still protruding from between his knuckles, stepped up to the older mutant, glared at him and snapped. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

So taken aback was he by the tone in the young woman's voice that Logan, for a second just stood there, staring at her. Finally he blinked. "What the hell do I think I'm doin'? Maybe ya didn't notice but…" he gestured in the direction of Spike with his claws still poking out from between his knuckles as Spike tried to rub the soreness out from his forehead, "he's a vampire."

"Yeah," Buffy admitted. "I know that. Your point being?" she asked a little huffily.

Logan blinked confusedly again. He finally took a few deep breaths to calm his nerves and sheathed his claws. "My point being?" Logan started. "I thought we came down here to fight demons… and last I checked," he pointed in the direction of Spike before shouting back, "A vampire was a demon!"

"Yeah," Buffy nodded in agreement. She finally said in a calm voice, "but Spike is different. He's not like other vampires." When Logan gave her a sceptical look, Buffy added. "He has a soul."

Logan raised an eyebrow in response and asked, "And that's supposed ta mean what exactly?"

"It means that unlike other vampires, Spike possesses a conscience," Buffy was glad to find Giles stepping up to explain Spike's unique condition to the slightly irate mutant. The rest of the X-Men and the Scoobies had also come closer to the trio of Buffy, Spike and Logan, as they listened intently at the older Englishman's explanation. Logan just turned his head slightly to regard the older Englishman himself who continued on, "And as much as I may loathe admitting this… but Spike… has proven himself to be a valuable ally at times."

As Giles finished with a resigned nod, he had expected Logan, the oldest of the X-Men to nod at the admission. What he had not expected was to find himself at the receiving end of one of Logan's infamous glares.

"Ya didn't say nothin' about livin' with no vampires," Logan growled out.

"I, uh," Giles wavered slightly under the intense glare. "With everything that had happened back at the mansion, I guess this… must have slipped my mind." he finished even as he reached for his glasses and started to clean them while trying not to meet the gaze of the slightly enraged mutant.

Logan let his irritation over the whole situation show with a low but resigned growl. He turned to face the Slayer and the vampire and nearly took a step back as he found the vampire, who was nearly a foot taller than him glaring down at him. He hadn't even heard the vampire move up to him.

"Hello… mate," the bleached blonde vampire greeted the man with a mock pleasant smile plastered across his face. "You gotta problem with me hangin' 'round; I suggest you talk to me. Name's William the Bloody, but you wolf-boy can call me Spike."

Logan narrowed his eyes. He already didn't like the vampire.

"Spike," he heard the slayer call out to the vampire, "back off. They are here to help… lets not start anything."

Spike for his part didn't show any signs that he even heard the young woman behind him as he kept his gaze on Logan.

"I don't know ya an' I already don't like ya," Logan growled out through gritted teeth.

"Well, takin' in the fact that you tried to take my head off before we even had the opportunity to have this extremely pleasant conversation… consider the feelin' mutual," Spike responded with a smug smile plastered across his face. It was almost as though he knew his facial expressions would annoy the gruff mutant more than his words would.

And it did.

"He steps outta line," Logan warned Buffy after engaging in a staring contest with the vampire for a few seconds, "harms any of the X-Men, and I'll turn him into shish kebab."

"He won't," Buffy said resolutely. "And if he does, you'll just have to wait your turn after me to get to him."

Logan turned to see if Buffy's words had had any effect on the vampire only to find the vampire nodding resignedly. It was almost as though he was completely ok with the young woman finishing him off if he did wrong. Logan, despite himself, started to find himself respecting the slayer even more. It was not every day he found someone… a vampire at that, who would actually trust someone enough to know that if he ever went off the deep end, there would be someone to stop him… permanently.

Logan gave a single nod in acknowledgement. Spike just shrugged and started to walk away without giving any of the X-Men anything more than a cursory glance.

"Spike," he stopped when he heard Buffy calling out to him. "Where are you going?"

"Shorty there made me drop my last cig," the bleached blonde vampire complained pointing at Logan.

Logan heard a muffled snort coming from the direction of the Cajun thief from New Orleans. However, when he turned to glare at the young mutant, he found to his dismay no trace of humour on the young man's face.

"But the shops are all closed at this hour," Buffy said with a frown.

Spike just shrugged. "Yeah… so?" Buffy narrowed her eyes at the vampire and he just raised his arms defensively and added, "Alright. No need to get your knickers in a bunch. I'll leave some cash on the counter." Buffy's glare didn't falter. "I'll even make sure I leave the bloody door closed this time around." Before Buffy could say anything like, "That's not the point," Spike sauntered off into the darkness.

"So," Buffy turned as she heard the young girl named Kitty Pryde speak up. "He… was a vampire?" the young girl asked, a little unsurely.

Buffy nodded with a smile and replied, "Congrats, you just had your first encounter with a creature of the night."

Xander, who had been standing at the sidelines all this time finally piped in. "you can finally call yourself an official member of the Scoobies."

"Scoobies?" this time it was Rogue who spoke up. "Yah are kidding, right?"

"Umm," Xander paused and tried not to look sheepish. "It, uh, sounded like a pretty cool idea when we started out seven years ago."

Rogue tried hard not to let one of her rare and genuine smile from crossing her face, but failed.

"Now 'ow come Roguey dere neva' smile fo' Gambit like dat?" the former Acolyte sniffed.

"Unngghh," was the only reply he received from his companion to the side sitting in a wheel chair.

"Mebbe Gambit should start giving t'ings stupid names, neh?" he suggested with a shrug.

"Unngghh," was once again the only reply he received from the young and slightly sick Asian American girl at his side.

The Cajun X-Man finally turned to regard her. "Remy jus' realised y'really not dat much fun when y're sick, y'know dat p'tite?"

In response, Jubilee gave him her best "don't-make-me-paff-you-into-next-millennium" look. Which, given her current state, looked more humorous than threatening. Gambit therefore just smirked in return.

"Alright," Scott finally spoke up taking charge of the situation when he realised they were standing outside doing nothing. "Maybe we should all head in now and start settling in for the night."

Buffy saw Kurt letting out a tired yawn as Scott talked about settling in. She turned and nodded at the X-Men leader. "Right!" She gestured for Cyclops and the rest of the X-Men to follow her and Xander.

Buffy knocked on the door and called out to someone on the inside. "Will… open up."

"Buffy?" a female voice asked from the other side.

"Umm, that… does not sound like a Will." Kitty whispered to Kurt who simply shrugged his shoulders in response.

"Yeah Will. It's me." Buffy replied back.

Following this, the sounds of a few locks being turned was heard as the double doors of the mansion opened to reveal an attractive young woman with flaming red hair, much like that of Jean, in her early twenties, standing at the entrance. She looked over the assembled group and nervously waved a hand in greeting. "Umm… Hi!" she greeted the gathering. She stepped aside and gestured for everyone to come inside. "Come in, please."

Kitty leaned closer to Kurt and whispered again, "she doesn't look like a Will either."

"That's because she isn't a Will," Dawn spoke from behind Kitty. She leaned forward and whispered, "She's more like a Willow… than a Will."

"Willow?" Kitty's face scrounged up slightly. "Isn't she like the one who's a witch?"

Dawn nodded and Kitty and Kurt both started looking at the redhead with renewed interest.

They followed the rest of the X-Men inside the mansion. Buffy walked in with Logan following close behind. He was followed by Scott and Jean, both of whom greeted Willow with a pleasant smile to which Willow responded in kind. Following the two was Jubilee being wheeled inside by Gambit who gave Willow a nod and a smile. Willow's attention to his dismay was however on the youngest member of the X-Men.

As the X-Men entered the mansion, they were greeted by the sight of a few of the other residents of the mansion which just happened to be a group of girls ranging from early teens to early twenties. Scott and Jean offered a few of the girls a nod and a smile in greeting as a few of them came closer. Logan simply gave them a cursory nod as they came closer to introduce themselves.

"Hmm," Willow let out as she studied Jubilee. "Hey!" she greeted the young girl who looked up a little groggily and let out a muffled "Wassup!"

"Hello sweetie," Willow said concernedly. "You don't look so hot."

"Go' a cold," Jubilee sniffled.

The red headed witch seemed to think over something for a second. "I think I can cook up something that will clear up the cold by morning."

Jubilee's face actually lit up. "Really?"

Willow nodded with a smile. She turned to see Kitty and Kurt entering. At the sight of Kurt in his normal appearance, her eyes widened.

"Oh. My. God!" she exclaimed. Kurt cringed at the exclamation while Kitty frowned and crossed her arms in front of herself at the older woman's reaction to Kurt's appearance. Kurt for his part thought how he probably was never going to get used to the way people reacted around him in his normal appearance. Before he could teleport somewhere away from the redhead, or anyone else could protest at Willow's outburst, she rushed past Kitty, clasped both of Kurt's cheeks with her hands and squealed, "Buffy, he's sooo much cuter than in the pictures. And… and the fur… it's… it's…" She let out another squeal as she started to pinch Kurt's cheeks.

Kurt for his part had to change mental gears from depressed to happy in the span of a few second. X-Men training definitely hadn't prepared him for this. 'Vell, zat vas… unexpected.' He mused as he smiled toothily at the redhead who was still pinching away at his cheeks. "Hello," Kurt greeted her finally. "Ze name'z Kurt Wagner. But most people know me az Nightcrawler."

Willow let go of Kurt's cheeks, turned to Buffy and stated the obvious, "and… he has an accent." She was about to turn and grab hold of Kurt's cheeks again when Buffy coughed to divert the redhead's attention away from the blue German and to herself.

"Will," Buffy started. "You can pinch his cheeks later." Willow stuck out her lower lip in a disappointed pout. "Right now… we have to find a place for everyone to settle in."

"Right." Willow nodded to herself rather than in response. This was followed by Buffy introducing the redhead witch as her best friend.

"She's a home-grown Slayerette," Xander piped in happily as Buffy finished introducing Willow to the rest of the X-Men. He then added proudly, "just like me."

"Right," Buffy nodded with a roll of her eyes. "Anyways, she's our resident magic user." Buffy turned to the few of the girls who had gathered around and added, "And these are a few of the potential slayers that we are supposed to be looking after. Most of them are already sleeping… or trying to sleep." she paused for a second before adding. "You'll meet most of them in the morning."

"Hi," a tall, skinny and dark haired girl stepped up and waved cheerily at the gathered party. "I'm Amanda."

"Hello," Jean greeted the young girl who looked just a year or so younger than herself.

The next to greet the X-Men were Rona and Vi. The two were followed by Kennedy – the oldest of the potential.

"Hey," she greeted the leader of the X-Men with a cursory nod and turned her full attention on Jean and flashed the young X-Woman her most brilliant smile. "Hi!" she greeted the redhead with more interest than she had shown Cyclops. "Love your hair… is it natural?"

"Umm… yes," Jean was a little taken aback by the extreme forwardness of the young woman in front of her who was around the same age as herself.

"And that is one tight outfit you are wearing," Kennedy commented on Jean's X-Men uniform.

Despite her better judgement, not to mention training, Jean lowered her shield just slightly to pick up on Kennedy's surface thoughts… and promptly blushed at the very R-Rated situations she found herself in the young woman's mind. She tried to hide her embarrassment and slightly flushed cheeks by coughing and putting a hand in front of her mouth. This however only ended up garnering most of the attention in the room in her direction.

"Jean?" Scott asked concernedly. "You ok?"

"Yes," Jean said after composing herself as best as she could. "Sorry… I, uh," she tried but failed to hide the embarrassed smile that had found its way to her lips, but finally turned to the young woman in front of her and said, "umm… thanks for the compliment. It's, uh, nice to meet you too."

Kennedy in return gave Jean a slightly puzzled look as though trying to figure out what was wrong with her a moment ago. Jean not only put her mental shields up, but added a few more extra shields. And she did so just in time too as Kennedy started daydreaming about the many ways she could assist the young redhead if necessary as a dreamy expression spread over her countenance.

Jean had the distinct feeling that the young woman probably knew she was a telepath and therefore was only projecting loudly because she knew how uncomfortable this was most likely going to make her. However, with her mental shields in place, she had no way, and definitely no intention of entering the young woman's mind again to check for that little information.

Trying to move on to a different topic, Jean noticed a young Chinese girl standing a few feet away from the four potentials and looking at the X-Men with wide eyed fascination. Being the courteous one, she stepped forward and introduced herself. The Chinese girl shook Jean's hand enthusiastically and then shook her head slightly and said, "Heh… I really have no idea what is going on."

Jean blinked. The girl had just spoken to her in Chinese. Since she didn't exactly speak the language, she turned towards Scott, and then remembering even he didn't speak the language, turned towards anyone who would be able to translate.

"She said she's very glad to meet you," Giles said helpfully.

"No she didn't," Giles turned surprisingly to hear Logan speak up. "She said she's got no idea what the hell is goin' on here."

Giles blinked. "You… understand what she said?" Giles asked in what most would recognise as the closest he's ever come to taking on a pleading tone.

Logan just nodded. "Do ya know why yer here?" he asked the Chinese girl.

Chao-Ahn's eyes widened as she heard the gruff looking man not only speak to her fluently in Chinese, but also in her own dialect. Logan for his part, before he could prepare himself, suddenly found himself being at the receiving end of what would have been a crushing hug if it hadn't been for his adamantium laced bones.

"Oh thank you thank you thank you. It is so good to finally find someone who can speak my language," the girl said hurriedly in evident relief. She pointed a finger in Giles's direction while still clinging to the gruff Canadian. Logan tried to dislodge himself unsuccessfully from the girl's embrace as he started looking somewhat uncomfortable at the situation he found himself in.

"Ever since he brought me here from Shanghai, he's been trying to scare me with pictures of monsters and also trying to kill me by giving me ice-cream and all other dairy related products. I told him… I told him a thousand times that I'm lactose intolerant but he keeps on buying me milk and ice-creams and… and… no one understands me… I can't speak to anyone and I'm scared and…" by now Logan had discarded the idea of trying to dislodge himself from the girl and simply pulled her into an even tighter embrace as Chao-Ahn, on the verge of breaking down after living in a house where no one understood her rambled on, "and I keep getting sick and have to use the toilet more and," she pointed a finger in Rona's direction who was looking at the proceedings in front of her with wide eyes as Chao-Ahn continued, "she keeps scolding me for taking too long in the toilet but I can't help it… and no one understands… and… and…"

"Shhh," Logan shushed the young girl. "Everything's gonna be just fine," he told her in Cantonese.

"Giles?" Buffy came forward, her face a mask of concern as she watched the young Chinese girl who had been living with them for nearly a few weeks started to sob quietly as she buried her face into Logan's chest. It was as if she was trying to hide herself from everyone by burying her face deep within Logan's jacket, almost as though she was ashamed of the fact that she had started crying in front of strangers. "What's going on?" Buffy asked her mentor.

"I," Giles started. He finally shook his head and said, "I… I really have no idea."

"Of course ya don't know what the hell's goin' on with her," Logan growled out at the Englishman while giving him a furious glare. When Giles simply looked on in puzzlement he explained to him exactly the trouble the girl had had to go through ever since she came to live in the Scooby household.

"That why she was spending so much time in the restrooms?" Rona asked even though she already knew the answer to that question. She finally came forward to apologise to Chao-Ahn but the Chinese girl just clung tighter to Logan as though letting go of him would be like letting go of a lifeline in the middle of a stormy sea.

Willow ran into another room and came back with a box of tissues. She handed it over to the Chinese girl who was finally on the first stages of composing herself as she finally let go of Logan and gave him a shy and somewhat embarrassed smile. Logan just smiled back reassuringly.

"Chao-Ahn," Giles finally came forward looking not only lost but defeated as he realised that there had been someone living under the same roof as him, suffering on a daily basis and not only did he not have a clue about it, but that he had in fact contributed to the deterioration of the situation. "I am so sorry… I wish I could have taken better care of you but… I… I really don't have an excuse… I should have tried to understand you better than simply pretending to understand… I just…" he let his shoulders slump as he let out a defeated sigh.

Chao-Ahn just looked at Logan waiting for him to translate what Giles had said. Logan did so but also added that the man promised to take better care of her from now on. Chao-Ahn asked when she could go home and Logan, not wanting to sugar-coat anything from her simply told her the truth. "It's gonna take some time kid," he told her in Cantonese. "After this whole thing blows over, I'll make sure ya get back… k?" he asked to which he received enthusiastic nods.

Kennedy and Vi were finally able to lead the girl away to get some well deserved rest. Rona decided to stay behind as she knew she wasn't exactly on the poor girl's favourite peoples list. But then she decided against it and followed the three girls into the other room as she had a lot to make up for to the young Chinese girl. Amanda soon followed after waving cheerily one last time at the X-Men.

The departure of the four girls left a somewhat uncomfortable silence lingering in the room.

"Well," Gambit, being the least comfortable in situations such as this finally broke the silence. "Gambit don' no about y'll but Gambit sure glad we got dat out of de way."

This was followed by a few nods.

"Right," Buffy finally spoke up. "Ok… here's what we're going to do." Buffy pointed to stairs that led to rooms on the second floor and then proceeded to point out doors that led to rooms on the first floor. "Most of the potentials are staying on the second floor while we'll be staying down here on the first floor," she said. "Spike suggested the arrangement because this place belongs to his grandsire who… just happens to be a vampire…"

"Wait," Kitty interrupted her. "Didn't you say this used to belong to your ex?"

Buffy nodded her head slowly and said, "Yes."

"Oh," Kitty nodded. "But…"

"Let's not talk about that right now," Buffy interjected a little quickly. She forced a smile at the younger X-Woman which elicited a few odd looks being exchanged between the members of the X-Men. Logan couldn't decide whether to frown, scowl or simply quirk an eyebrow at this revelation. "Right," Buffy started again. "Like I was saying, since this place belongs to a vampire, anything and everything can just walk in here. Willow has to work her mojo to put a protective spell around the house to keep that from happening in the future." She looked to the redheaded Wicca for confirmation.

"Right." Willow nodded in agreement. "I was supposed to put one up today, but we are kind of short on some of the ingredients I'll need for this spell."

"Then… exactly how are we supposed to keep everyone safe tonight?" Cyclops raised the question as his tactical mind immediately saw the gap in security that was going to be present that very night. A part of him silently prayed that Buffy had planned for this though. After flying the X-Jet all the way from New York, he knew he would be useless to the mission without some rest. Plus, he could already see Kurt falling asleep while still standing on his feet. And… he quirked an eyebrow in Jubilee's direction only to find the youngest member of their little entourage already halfway to la-la land if her drooping head was any indication.

"Don't worry about it," Buffy told the young leader. "Spike and I are going to be standing watch tonight."

"Just yah two?" Rogue asked showing the first signs of concern for the young woman.

Buffy just smiled confidently and replied, "don't worry… there are not many things that can get past the two of us."

"Well chére," Gambit added helpfully. "Gambit's always been kind o'a night person… mebbe Gambit could help y'both keep watch."

"Umm… are you sure?" Buffy asked, not willing to burden a member of the X-Men with the safety of the people within the mansion as soon as they had arrived.

"T'ink nothin' o'it," Gambit just waved off the slayer's concerns with a slight shrug of one of his shoulders.

"I mean, really, it's not necessary… it's not like anything's actually going to happen tonight," Buffy added with a shrug.

At this, Logan asked with a puzzled frown, "Wait." When Buffy looked up to meet his gaze he asked, "what do ya mean by nothin's gonna happen tonight?"

Well, its Sunday," Buffy offered helpfully… which wasn't really helpful at all as most of the still awake X-Men exchanged puzzled glances. They realised they had been doing that a lot more since they had arrived in Sunnydale.

"Umm… ok, you lost me there," Cyclops conceded.

"It's Sunday," Buffy repeated again… as though speaking to a group of toddlers. "Major demons never attack on Sundays… they always attack on Tuesdays. That's day after tomorrow. So we have at least the entire day tomorrow to prepare for whatever the First Evil is going to throw at us on Tuesday."

"Jean," Cyclops called out to his girlfriend telepathically.

"Scott?" was Jean's immediate response.

"You know that headache I had earlier… the headache that was nearly gone… I think it's about to make a comeback… and its probably bringing some friends along as well," Cyclops told her through their link.

Jean could've sworn the words had come out more as a whimper rather than as a statement. "I think one of those friends may be trying to get inside my head," Jean sighed.

"I hope they have a lot of aspirin," Scott told her. "Looks like even Logan's getting a headache."

True enough; the gruff Canadian was massaging his forehead while sporting a slightly pained expression on his face. Both Rogue and Kitty had the exact same expression of confusion written over their faces which was something considering both the girls were polar opposites of each other. Kurt's tail looked as though it had taken on a life of its own.

"Yah reahly lost us there," Rogue just shook her head in confusion. Kitty and a now wide awake Kurt and Jubilee nodded in agreement. Gambit had quirked one of his eyebrows when Buffy had started her 'Tuesday' explanation. That eyebrow had still to return to its normal position.

Buffy sighed. "Anything and everything big that's going to happen is going to happen on Tuesdays," she started again. "It's demon fact." She added helpfully. When she noticed that the X-Men still had puzzled expressions on their faces she explained. "All really powerful demons sleep during the weekend, wake up on Monday, spend the entire day making plans for their own version of the end of the world or whatever it is they want to do and then they go on and carry out that plan on Tuesdays."

"She's right," Dawn piped in. "every time I've been kidnapped it's always been on Tuesdays."

"I was possessed by the spirit of a hyena on a Tuesday," Xander admitted. "And then I turned into an Army guy on Halloween which happened to be on a Tuesday as well." He paused for a few seconds, frowned and asked the few Scooby members who were present. "Is it me or have we never actually been able to enjoy primetime shows on Tuesdays in lets say… ever?"

"Who cares," Buffy waved it off with a shrug. "With our luck, it's probably going to be some dumb show with exact resemblance to our lives."

"Even statistically speaking," Giles added quickly bringing everyone's attention back to the point in question. "Tuesday does seem to be the prime choice for most major demonic events."

"I tried to destroy the world on a Tuesday," Willow added helpfully. However, when the heads of few of the members of the X-Men snapped in her direction she quickly added, "but I was just going through a bad phase then… and I'm not evil anymore… not that I ever was… umm… evil you know. And I really will never try to end the world again…" she babbled on for a few more seconds before looking down at the floor and finally saying, "umm… I… I think I'm going to shut up now."

"Thanks Will," Buffy thanked her friend for her little contribution. Something she could have done without. She turned her attention back to the X-Men and stated, "See, it's not Tuesday. Therefore nothing's going to happen tonight."

"Y'know somet'ing," Gambit sighed. "Mebbe Remy need t'get some rest after all." He looked around at the rest of his team-mates and suggested, "mebbe dis all make mo' sense in da mo'ning."

A few nods were all he received in response.

"Anya is so much better at explaining demon facts." Buffy frowned as she saw she still hadn't succeeded in getting her point through to the members of the X-Men. "Where is she?" she asked turning to Willow. "Come to think of it… I thought for sure Andrew would be here to greet the X-Men in his own geeky way…"

"The both of them kind of… umm…," Willow paused for a second before continuing, "knocked each other out trying to do a sleeping spell on each other."

"How did…" Buffy started but then shook her head. "You know something. I don't think I want to know."

"Heh," Willow giggled. "It was quite funny actually."

"Will," Buffy growled warningly at the redhead who gulped despite being the more powerful of the two. "I don't want to know." Willow nodded meekly.

The blonde slayer then turned to the rest of the X-Men and declared. "Ok, we didn't exactly get a chance to move everything from my house today so some of you will have to settle for mattresses on the floor."

This was followed by a few understanding nods from a few members of the X-Men while the rest let out slightly disappointed but resigned nods.

"Alright!" Willow finally spoke up cheerily. "How about I get you settled in first," she said turning to Jubilee, who in turn turned to Logan for his say-so.

Logan gave her a nod and a quick smile in assurance. "I'll come an' check up on ya in a bit."

"Alright Wolvie," Jubilee said as she was wheeled into another room.

Buffy watched the girl being wheeled away and turned and said. "Umm… the kitchen is that way," she pointed towards a room near the back of the mansion. "There's not much in there right now, but there should be just about enough to satisfy any midnight cravings you guys may have."

Cyclops, Gambit, Kitty and Rogue all thanked the older Summers for pointing it out to them. Buffy was pretty sure a few of them were going to get themselves well aquatinted with the kitchen by the time it was morning. She pointed out the two restrooms on the ground floor as well.

* * *

When Willow finally came back after making sure Jubilee was comfortable, Buffy decided to head out and find Spike, leaving Willow, Giles and Xander in charge of setting up the rest of the group. The X-Men for their part decided to freshen up, and change from their uniforms but decided to keep some of their combat apparels nearby as they finally decided to settle in for their first night in Sunnydale. 

Scott, Kurt, Gambit and Logan, all four members of the X-Men decided to sleep close to the main entrance making use of the mattresses that had been provided, so that just in case, despite the many reassurances of both Giles and Willow that nothing was going to attack the mansion that night because it was not a Tuesday, a logic they knew they would probably never get used to, they'd be ready to react and defend the occupants of the mansion without much difficulty.

Willow decided to put all the X-Girls in one room with Dawn as she noticed that Dawn was fast becoming good friends with the young X-Woman, Kitty Pryde. As they were all settling in, Rogue turned to the redheaded Wicca and said. "Ah'm sorry, but ah need ta sleep someplace where no one could come in contact with meh while ah sleep." She pointed towards the three girls, two of whom were in bed while Jean was taking the mattress on the floor. When Willow looked at her a little puzzled, Rogue explained. "Its mah mutation…" a pained expression flashed across the young Goth's face so quickly that Willow nearly missed it. "Ah… ah can't come into skin contact with anyone."

"Can't you, umm, turn it off or something?" Willow asked hesitantly. "Your power I mean," She added quickly.

Willows eyes widened slightly as Rogue shook her head in the negative, her face devoid of all emotions. "Umm," Willow wanted to ask the girl a few more questions about her mutation but decided against it when Kitty waved at the redhead from behind the Goth to not ask about it, letting Willow know in her own way that this was a sore area she should leave alone… for now at least until the Goth was ready to talk about her mutation.

"Ok, sure," Willow said a little too cheerily. "You can sleep in Buffy's room. She's probably going to stay out all night anyways."

"Good," was Rogue's quick but short reply as she followed the redheaded witch out of the room but not before wishing everyone a very good night.

As she was passing through the front of the mansion where the rest of her team-mates had settled themselves, Gambit called out to her.

"Hey… Chére." Rogue stopped to listen to what the Cajun thief from New Orleans had to say. "Wolvie jus' went t'Jubilee's room kiss he' goodnight." A sly smile crossed his face as he wiggled his eyebrows and asked in a suggestive tone, "y' ask nicely, maybe Remy do de same fo' y'."

"Shaddup yah stupid Cajun!" Rogue growled out before gesturing for Willow to lead her towards Buffy's room. Gambit just let out a chuckle.

Scott looked on at the retreating figures of Rogue and Willow and said, "You know Gambit, you keep that up, one of these days she's going to end up picking you up and flinging you all the way to Antarctica… and she'd most likely leave you there."

"Ja," Kurt mumbled out an agreement from his place near the fireplace.

"Y'don' need t'worry homme," Gambit responded slyly. "Rogue loves dis Cajun too much t'leave Remy in the middle' o' now'ere."

"For your sake," Scott sighed as he closed his eyes behind his ruby quartz glasses. "I hope you're right."

A few seconds of silence followed this which was only broken by Xander, who overhearing the conversation that had gone on between the three X-Men finally decided to ask. "When you guys say she'll fling him all the way to Antarctica. You don't really mean she could…?" he left the question hanging in the air, not certain if he even wanted to know the answer.

In response, he just received identical "what-do-you-think?" stares from all three members of the X-Men.

"Oh boy!" Xander exhaled loudly. He and Giles just sat in companionable silence in front of a small table where they had been talking about Giles's trip to New York as the X-Men finally drifted off to some much deserved sleep.

* * *

"She's settled in?" Giles asked the gruff Canadian as he made his way back into the room. 

Logan turned to Giles, as though surprised at the question. He finally nodded. "Yeah, she's all tucked in. Already driving that Vi girl outta her mind."

"Ah yes," Giles nodded. He was certain if he had found the young Asian American instead of Buffy seven years ago, he would have been living in an insane asylum by now as well.

Logan regarded the two residents of Sunnydale, as though contemplating on something. He finally started towards them which made both Xander and Giles share a look.

"So," Logan said as he pulled up a chair and sat down at the table with the two men. A feral grin crossed his face as he said, "tell me about the vampire."

* * *

**To Be Continued…

* * *

**

**Author's Notes: -**

Hey guys. First of all, sorry for not updating in so long and for keeping you all waiting. But I've been busy with assignments and exams. I'm done with them now but I still have one last major assignment that I'll need to submit if I am to get my degree. Let's just say it really puts a dampener on my fan-fiction writing time. So from now on I've decided to break down future chapters into smaller parts and post them here. Plus, it's easier, not to mention faster for me to read through a smaller chapter and make changes where necessary. I've also found myself a beta-reader recently, but I asked her to start with chapter one. Hopefully with her help, this story will sound a lot better by the time it's finally finished.

Anyways, with that out of the way… let me know what you thought of this chapter. Even though it took me more than a month to work on this particular chapter, I enjoyed working on this chapter a lot. I really hope you all love this chapter as much as I loved working on it.

Starting from the next chapter, there'll be a lot of spoilers from Season 7 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer… with my own little crossover twists added to them of course. I just hope you'll all love what I've planned for our favourite band of mutant superheroes. I did leave a few hints in this chapter of possible trouble that could arise in the future for both the teams. Were you able to guess what they were? Heh. Let me know of your suspicions in your reviews. No, as always, I won't deny any suspicions or consent to them. But it really is so much fun to see how close most of my readers get.

Oh, and watch out… this story as it progresses may not just remain grounded to the Marvel and BTVS universe only. ;-). I think I'll just leave it at that for now.

Take care of yourself, stay safe and please… leave me your reviews. I love hearing what you think of my story even if you use just a few words to say it. Anonymous readers please leave me some form of contact detail so I can at least thank you for taking your time to review.

**So please... ****Review. Review. Review.**


	9. Settling In Part 1

**Disclaimer:** All familiar characters belong to their respective copyright owners and are being used without their permission. I am not in any way affiliated with any of the groups or organizations that hold rights over the characters that appear in this particular story and neither have I been authorized to write the following story. This is a non-profit fan based effort and no copyright infringement is intended. So, umm… please don't sue. The plot and original characters however belong to me. Any and all feedback will be much appreciated. Redistribution of this tale for profit is strictly prohibited. Please obtain my permission before archiving this story anywhere else on the net. Thank you very much. Enjoy.

* * *

**Chapter 9: Settling In (Part 1)

* * *

**

Buffy gradually opened her hazel green eyes as she awakened from her short but deep sleep. She turned her head slightly to get a better look at the clock on the small bedside table.

It read seven thirty.

With a slight groan she picked herself up to a seated position and looked over the bed to see the sleeping form of the X-Woman Rogue.

She stretched to work the kinks out of her still slightly sore muscles. Sore muscles one could only get by sleeping on the floor using nothing but a mattress and one single pillow. Fortunately for her, her slayer healing was already working towards getting rid of the few aches that were troubling her.

She had returned to her room at around 4:30 am in the morning and had found the young Goth occupying the bed she had assigned to herself.

Most of the other rooms were either taken by the potentials or the Scoobies… not to mention the X-Men. Not wanting to disturb Rogue from her sleep, she had opted to make herself as comfortable as possible on the floor by making use of a blanket she had recovered from one of the closets. She did however; steal her pillow from the Goth heroine. Well, it was not as though the girl needed two pillows.

Three hours of sleep. It was going to have to be enough.

Being a slayer meant she could go days without proper rest, but that did not stop her from squeezing in every minute of sleep she could manage.

The sounds of a low whimper coming from the young woman occupying her bed made her head snap in Rogue's direction. She watched as Rogue's eyebrows knitted together forming a slight frown as the girl tried to ward off whatever demons haunted her dreams.

Buffy cocked her head to a side and studied the myriad of emotions playing across the young Goth's face. Most prominent being that of sorrow and pain… and fear.

When she had returned near daybreak, she had found the girl in the thralls of another nightmare. She wondered briefly if the girl was still suffering from that same nightmare.

Buffy thought of waking the girl up – thought against it – then finally decided to wake her up. Suffering from prophetic dreams on several occasions, Buffy knew exactly how relieved she felt every time she woke up from any type of nightmare.

She knew she did not even know the girl that much but she hoped that Rogue would thank her for bringing her out of whatever nightmare world she had found herself in. she couldn't imagine how someone so young could have nightmares that last for hours.

"Only on the hell-mouth." She offhandedly muttered.

She reached out and grabbed the young Goth lightly by the shoulders, being unaware and not even noticing that the particular anatomy she had reached out to grab was covered by a layer of thick blanket. She shook Rogue slightly.

"Umm, Rogue." She said softly. "Rogue… wake up!"

After a few more tries, Buffy saw Rogue's whimpers getting a little loud and therefore shook her just a little harder.

And Rogue did wake up… with a jolt. And Buffy for her part found herself sprawled out on the floor. After of course bouncing off the wall at the opposite end of the room.

* * *

As the last vestiges of the nightmare of watching her… no, she corrected herself immediately, not her family, but Magneto's being shot down in the Auschwitz death camps finally left her, Rogue finally came to her senses. 

For a second, her eyes darted around the room taking in her surroundings. As though she was not sure where she was. Slowly but surely, the events from the previous day came to her.

Rupert Giles.

Dawn.

Jubilee… potential slayer.

Sunnydale.

Buffy.

Scoobies?

She cocked her head at that last part. No, that was it. The slightly older man, Xander had called his team the Scoobies. But didn't he refer to themselves as Slayerettes as well? Rogue shook her head to clear away the cobwebs.

A small "ooww" however diverted her attention to the opposite end of the room, where to her horror she found Dawn's older sister lying on the floor in a heap.

"Oh mah Gawd!" Rogue exclaimed as she pulled off the blankets and ran to help the young woman up from the floor. Halfway there, she realised she was not wearing any of her gloves. She turned her gaze to the bedside table where her gloves lay beside the small clock.

In a span of a few seconds, she was at the small table picking up her gloves and putting them on and then back at the spot where Buffy was picking herself up from the floor with a groan.

"Are yah ahlright?" she asked concernedly as she helped the older Summers to her feet.

"Peachy," Buffy replied as she graciously accepted the young girl's offered hand. Still a little wobbly on her feet, she stared at Rogue and grinned. "Heh…sorry I startled you."

At Rogue's confused look, Buffy elaborated. "You were having a nightmare," she started. "Thought I'd bring you out of it."

Rogue nodded understandingly. "Thanks."

Buffy shrugged and winced a little. Her left arm and torso having taken the brunt of the impact were stinging like crazy. Thank god her slayer healing was already taking care of them. She felt as though she had been hit by Glory.

"It's alright." She regarded the younger woman who for her part was looking anywhere but in her direction. She couldn't help but find it a little funny. Yesterday night, the girl had been the model of confidence. Here, at this time, half drowsy from just having woken up from sleep, she looked like any other teenager who had done something terrible and was waiting to be reprimanded. Buffy however had no intention of doing anything of the sort. "You're really strong you know that?" Buffy commented with a chuckle meant to alleviate the girl's fears.

Rogue shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot before finally looking up with regret clearly showing in her eyes. "Sohry about tha'. The strength and speed are kindah new. Ah'm still getting used ta it."

Considering that this was the first time one of the X-Men had actually offered some information about their powers, Buffy was eager to learn more. After all, what good were the X-Men if she did not know exactly what each of their members were capable of and how each one of them could contribute to the mission?

Plus, there was only so much one could learn from watching TV footage of the team and reading magazine and web articles.

"I can relate," Buffy stated in a knowing tone remembering the first few accidents that had occurred due to her slayer strength. "So," Buffy started again cheerily, no sign of any discomfort from her impact with the wall any longer visible on her face. "What else can you do… if you don't mind my asking?"

Since she didn't find anything wrong in telling the slightly older woman about her powers, Rogue started, "Well, right now, ah got theh super strength, near invulnerability, flight and…"

"Flight?" she was cut off as Buffy interrupted her. "As in," Buffy imitated the action of a plane taking off with one of her hands, "fly…fly?"

Rogue nodded as Buffy's eyes became as huge as saucers.

"As in like a bird fly… right?" Buffy asked again. Just to be sure. Despite herself, a smile crossed Rogue's face as she nodded in affirmation.

"Yeah." She said. Buffy's mouth fell open the next instant as with a gentle push, Rogue lifted herself off the floor and hovered there in midair, just a few feet away from her. "As in fly." Rogue stated and couldn't stop herself from letting a genuine laugh escape her lips at the gawking expression on Buffy's face.

Rogue lowered herself to the floor gracefully as Buffy finally closed her suddenly dry mouth. "T-that's… Wow! I mean, I've heard that a few people could do that but, wow. Seeing it is definitely something else." she stated grinning widely.

Rogue just smiled back. "Its mah fahvourite powah of all."

"Man…" Buffy sighed as she shook her head and stared at the young Goth in wonder. "What I wouldn't give to be able to fly." She confided.

"Its ahlright." Rogue shrugged. "Can be a little scary the first few tahmes though." She admitted with a slight shudder. She looked up and added. "Until yah remembah tha' yah're invulnerable so no mattah how far yah fall from, yah're gonna be ahlright."

Buffy not being able to relate to the experience described by the young woman simply nodded. Her gaze turned to the clock and she had to remind herself that she had a school counselling job to get to. "Sorry Rogue," she frowned for a second and asked, "Is that your real name?"

"Everyone just calls meh Rogue," Rogue responded. The fact that she still did not offer her real name did not escape Buffy's notice. She however tried not to show it on her face.

"Right. Ok, I need to go get ready for work." Buffy explained. "I'm sorry I woke you up… but…" she trailed off.

"Thanks." Rogue offered with a half smile and a nod. "Ah'll get some more rest befoh ah head down and meet the othahs."

"Good." Buffy said. She smiled one last time at the Goth and then proceeded to make her way to the nearest available restroom. But not before picking up a few fresh clothes she had brought along from her house. She reminded herself that she needed to go back to her place and get some more sometime later on in the day.

* * *

Logan walked out of the mansion and into the courtyard flinching slightly at the bright morning sunlight. He scowled. California can be so…bright. 

He noticed at least fifteen girls, all of whom he assumed were potential slayers going through punching and kicking sequences following the slightly older potential slayer Kennedy's direction.

He recognised a few of the girls from the previous night. Chao-Ahn and Amanda waved at him happily and he found himself returning the gesture in kind. As he walked past the potentials, he gave the other girls a cursory nod and walked on. Most of the girls followed his movement with slightly wide-eyed fascination, having not seen him the night before. He could hear them starting to chat about the X-Men as soon as they thought he was out of hearing range.

'Yeah right. Good luck on that kids.' Logan mused. He then heard the Kennedy girl shouting out in a commanding voice, "What the hell do you think you're talking about potentials. Get back in line!"

He smirked and shook his head.

He walked out of the mansion grounds and decided to take a stroll around the block. To get a feel for the area. And to decide where the weakest points of defence were. Not to mention he needed to call the Professor and report to him about the happenings of this small town and their so far cooperative hosts.

As he walked past a few other pedestrians in the area, garnering a few odd looks from here and there, he brought out a metallic looking device from the front pocket of his jeans; a device that looked suspiciously like a cell-phone. He pressed a button on it and clicked it on. The bottom and top part of the small device extended out in opposite directions becoming something that resembled a mouth and ear piece.

He did not need to dial any number on this particular device. As soon as it was clicked on, the only other person on the planet who would be able to converse with him was none other that the benefactor of the X-Men, Professor Charles Xavier.

"Charles?" he started speaking into the communicator casually as he walked past a few shops that were starting to open. "Ya there?"

"Logan?" he heard his old friend's voice come through the small speakers that were built into the communicator. "How are things?"

Logan cocked at eyebrow at this question even though the Professor could not see it. He sighed and started relaying the details of what had happened since they had arrived in Sunnydale the previous night.

* * *

Charles Xavier listened intently to Logan's detailed report of what had happened the previous night as he sat in his elegantly furnished office. As Logan finished his report, the Professor nodded to himself and said into the communicator. "Thank you very much Logan. I appreciate you taking the time to inform me of the situation there." 

"Nah, don't mention it," he heard Logan reply back.

"How are the rest of the team doing?" The Professor asked.

"Kitty and Jean are up and helping Willow in the kitchen with breakfast, the girl who's supposed to be a witch." Logan stated. "Scott's up and about. Kurt an' Gumbo are still snoring away. Dunno how though. With all the racket those potentials are makin'." the Professor just smiled and shook his head in amusement.

"Am I to believe Rogue has not joined the land of the awakened yet?" Professor Xavier asked and received the answer he was almost certain of.

"Ya believed right. Well, last I checked anyways." Logan said with a snort. "I think Kurt, Gumbo and Rogue are makin' the most of not havin' ta get up fer Danger Room sessions in the mornin'." Logan paused for a seconds before adding, "Gotta do somethin' about that."

"I am certain you will come up with a suitable alternative," the Professor suggested helpfully.

If he had been any other man, he would have dived under his large wooden desk and cowered at the sight of the feral gleam that had suddenly appeared in Logan's eyes as his mind raced through the many possibilities of alternative exercises he could put the X-Men through. However, as it went, he was not just any man, but Professor Charles Francis Xavier, founder of the X-Men. And therefore, he simply remained seated in his comfortable wheelchair giving his feral friend at the other end of the connection a few seconds to gather his thoughts before he decided to speak again.

Of course, the fact that he could not actually see the gleam in his friend's eyes may also have contributed to the Professor still being seated in his wheelchair. Sadly, this was one of those questions which will forever remain unanswered.

"How is Jubilee Logan?" the Professor finally decided to speak up. "Is she feeling better?"

"I dunno Chuck!" Logan admitted. "Willow gave her some kinda potion, s'posed to help her recover faster or somethin'. Last I saw her when I woke up, she was breathin' fine and she smelled kinda better." Logan shrugged even though the Professor couldn't see it. "Maybe it worked. Not like I know much about potions and stuff."

"I am certain Miss Rosenberg knows what she is doing Logan." The Professor supplied helpfully. At least, Rupert Giles had been very confident in the witch's powers and abilities.

"Yeah, yeah," Logan sighed. "Doesn't mean I gotta like it."

"I am certain things will get better Logan," Professor Xavier said into the communicator. He then added. "Try and give them a chance."

"Right," Professor Xavier could almost see his friend nod his head in affirmation. "So who else is back at the mansion?"

"Piotr is arriving sometime tonight," Professor Xavier stated. "As for Hank, he is..."

A knock on the door alerted the Professor to the presence of someone waiting outside his office. Upon recognising the presence, he smiled and spoke into the communicator, "Beast… is here." Without raising his voice he called out telepathically to the X-Men's resident doctor, "Come in Hank."

The door to the office opened a little as the smiling face of one Dr Henry McCoy peered in through the opening. Professor Xavier gestured with an ever present smile for the blue furred mutant to come inside and take a seat as he said into the communicator. "Logan."

"Yeah?" Came the instant reply. "I'm here."

"I will speak to you same time tomorrow," the Professor said. His voice took on a concerned tone to it as he added, "please. Take care of the children and let us know if you need anyone else to come down."

"Got it Chuck!" Logan responded. "Over and out."

With that the Professor felt his feral friend cut the connection. He gently laid the communicator back on the table and turned to the man known as Beast. He reached a hand out as Dr McCoy took it in his own and they shook it enthusiastically. "Henry, it is good to have you back."

"It is good to be back Professor." Hank admitted with a toothy grin as he settled back into a seat.

"I am sorry I had to call you back Hank…" The Professor said with regret but was quickly dismissed by Hank with a wave of his hand.

"Think nothing of it Professor," Hank stated.

"You did sound very excited about the work you were doing with SHIELD." Professor Xavier added and smiled as he saw the young scientist's face lit up in excitement.

"It was indeed." Hank nodded. "But, I'm sure that can wait. I was hoping you would be kind enough to let me know about what has been happening at the mansion. I noticed the absence of a few of our residents. Camping trip with Logan?"

Hank watched as the Professor's face became solemn. "I wish that had been the case," the Professor stated grimly.

Hank had wanted to speak to the Professor about the research work he had conducted with some of the scientists back at SHIELD. However, a look at the concern laced across the Professor's face and he knew that talks about his research were going to have to wait.

"You must be hungry as well as tired from your trip," the Professor said as he wheeled himself out from behind the desk. Hank stood up from his chair and grinned sheepishly as at the mention of food his stomach made a loud growl making its demands to be fed known. The Professor just chuckled and added, "Come. Let's go to the kitchen and prepare you something to eat first. We can discuss everything there."

"Yes, of course," Hank nodded as he went ahead of the Professor and held the door to the office wide open for the older man to wheel out of the office. Professor Xavier smiled in gratitude.

With that, Hank followed the Professor into the kitchen; not having the faintest clue that by the time he stepped out of that same kitchen, his view of the entire world was going to change.

* * *

**To Be Continued…**

* * *

**Author's Notes**

Alright everyone, as promised. Shorter chapters but slightly faster updates. I really hope you all enjoyed this first part of Settling In. I plan to get the next part up as soon as possible. In the mean time, do let me know what you thought of this one.

Also, just wanted to let you know that I've started working on a new story. It's called "**Six Sharp Claws and a Mister Pointy**". It's also a BTVS crossover with Marvel (slightly AU future). Here's a little preview: -

"One girl, Chosen. Slayer. The other, Clone. Mutant. Marvel AU, BTVS Crossover. Buffy the Vampire Slayer comes face to face with the most dangerous girl on the planet. Weapon X23."

Got your interests peaked? I sure hope so. Have a go through the first chapter and let me know what you think. Take care all. Before you go however, please… **REVIEW**. **REVIEW**. **REVIEW**.

**AUTHOR'S ANNOUNCEMENT **

Just a small reminder. This story has been revamped and a newer version of this story has been posted on is known as **The Guardians at the Gates of Hell: New Beginnings** and can be accessed through my Profile page. Here's to hoping you'll enjoy this newer version just as much as you enjoyed it in its prior incarnation. Thank you all and as always, Happy Reading.


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